I invite you to open a Bible to Ecclesiastes and to read the third chapter on your own, taking a moment to reflect on the text in silence.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 is perhaps the most widely known passage in the book, but it is easy to move through the poem quickly when reading it in context. Each line deserves to be meditated on individually in order to understand the specific application of each example in one’s own life. They also each, individually, contain the message of this chapter: that we are bound by time in this life and all that we experience is bound alongside us. We do not determine the beginning or end of any of these cycles. There is a time to plant and a time to harvest, and knowing them allows us to act appropriately. We do not set the time to plant by deciding to plow the field; we plow the field when it is time. When these lines are read together, the message is overwhelmingly applied to the reader’s entire life. But rather than attempting to resign the reader to powerlessness, this poem is meant to offer relief and agency. By knowing what is outside one’s control, time and energy can be spent acting within one’s realm of influence. The times of prosperity and peace can truly be enjoyed when they are received as a gift, and the times of darkness and mourning can be endured when one knows that they will come to an end.

Verse eleven contains another oft-quoted line from this chapter, but the second sentence is just as important as the first. As humans, we can only see and trust the first sentence because we have eternity in our hearts. In order to be patient and trust God, that eternal perspective must be present. Once this is truly understood, joy and good works can be embraced as the best things in life and one can work, eat, and drink in true comfort and joy.

Ash Wednesday was just days ago, and the end of chapter three contains the appropriate response to the somber day. Solomon’s two questions here both have the same answer: Christ. Not being able to see what is after death and seeing the similarities between our deaths and those of the beasts are or have been sources of doubt for almost every Christian. Under the sun, we do not have answers and must live in faith. Ash Wednesday reminds us of our mortality, but it does so in order to point us to God. And yet again, the result of this faith in eternal life is to rejoice now! This world, its struggles, its joys, and us in it are temporary apart from Christ, and we await eternity unburdened.

How have you responded to uncomfortable reminders in the past? How did Ash Wednesday prepare you for this Lenten season, and what are you keeping in mind each day within it? What simple, temporary joys can be seen more clearly and embraced more fully during this time of sober reflection? In this solemn time, keep your eyes raised to Christ and remember the peace that has been granted to us.