The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is from an old pastor who exhorted his congregation to, “Think about death daily.”
When he first said it, I was like, where in the world is he going with this? But now, 26 years after hearing that message, I can so see the value of the wisdom he shared!
It may not have been the most winsome message he ever gave, but for me personally, it was by far the most impactful…
King Solomon, the wisest man on the planet, writes something similar in Ecclesiastes 7. He tells us that it’s far better to spend time at funerals than at parties, {for}
“After all, everyone dies - so the living should take this to heart. Sorrow is better than laughter for sadness has a refining influence on us.”
Again, it feels like such a downer message, but the truth of it is undeniable.
I talked with a young writer friend recently who shared how his best work seems to surface when things are hard. I wholeheartedly agree!
I would call my past year & a half, “A Sifting Season of Sorrow” & yet I am confident of this: The way my trust in the Lord has skyrocketed & my reliance on myself has plummeted, COUOD NOT HAVE HAPPENED during a season of celebration!
Seasons of celebrations are oh-so-good, but they sometimes distract us from the unsettled things that lie deep in our hearts, hurt places that need the touch of a Healer 💞
Even though it’s not a warm & fuzzy feel-good message, Solomon is spot on when he writes,
“A wise person thinks a lot about death” for sorrow & sadness have a refining influence on us that no other circumstance could!
Father, we thank you for the refining seasons of sorrow that shed light on the hidden recesses of our hearts. Godly sorrow is good for there is no regret coupled with it…that type of sorrow is marked by a humble turn to face You, Father, as we are reminded of our great need of a Savior, here on earth and for eternity!
ECCLESIASTES 7:1-9:18
2 CORINTHIANS 7:8-16
PSALM 48:1-14
PROVERBS 22:17-19
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