Devotions

Weather Watchers

I’ve always appreciated the things Soloman wrote – and one of my favorites is Ecclesiastes 11:4 – Whoever watches the wind will not plant.  Whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

A simple interpretation would be that when your spirit makes a decision to do something your mind will find reasons not to do it now. The thought of watching the wind but not planting and looking at the clouds but not reaping makes me think of the weather.  One of my least favorite things about being the preacher is when bad weather is forecasted.  Because what happens is the forecast creates fear of something that possibly was never in our future to begin with.

So we have prepared for Church, worked hard to get everything ready and then people may not come – not because it’s snowing or raining – but because they were told all week it might.  I wonder how many things the devil has kept us from doing in our lives that God wanted us to do because of What Might Happen.  And he doesn’t’ even have to fight us with real events or circumstances but just the suggestion of a disaster is enough to send some in retreat.  Just the thought that it might not work out is enough to keep us from trying – the plane might go down.  Don’t fly – you could run into a tree – don’t ski Sonny Bono – the preacher might leave – don’t build a building – they might unfriend me,  don’t share my faith – I’ve seen Jaws 5 times don’t’ go in the ocean. Here’s the simple thought from Ecclesiastes 11   Strong Churches don’t watch the wind to decide if they are going to plant – and strong Churches don’t look at the clouds to decide if they are going to reap.  Our direction comes from the Word not the weather– and our Commission comes from the Lord and not the current climate.