Being diligent in following God

Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both. Light is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning. When people live to be very old, let them rejoice in every day of life. But let them also remember there will be many dark days. Everything still to come is meaningless. Young people, it’s wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it. Do everything you want to do; take it all in. But remember that you must give an account to God for everything you do. Ecclesiastes 11:6-9

There so many things in life that is unpredictable. Because of this, there are times that you find it difficult to navigate forgetting the past or even to move forward to the uncertainties of tomorrow. The challenge that each one faces is how to live the life in the midst of these uncertainties. From the text, King Solomon’s counsel is that you work hard while trusting God. He uses the image of a farmer where he has to sow the seeds and work hard in cultivating in anticipation of a harvest in the future. But since things can happen such as storm that could lead to flooding or the lack of rain that could lead to drought, he will not be deterred. The farmer will not be paralyzed in not taking actions by neglecting his work because of the possible misfortunes he might experience instead of obtaining bountiful harvest. He knows that if he will not work, he will not have a harvest. “Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest” (Ecclesiastes 11:4). This is the attitude God wants from His followers. They are not immobilized by their fear of the future but are focused in what they know God is leading them to do. Just because you do not know what the future holds, you refused to walk with Him. In this fallen world, expect that there will be times of joy and moments of heartaches. So rather than give up, trust God. Work hard and do what He calls you to do anticipating the harvest and if they don’t come, trust Him anyway.

Blessings