By Pastor Tim White
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant a time to uproot...He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from the beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:1-2, 11 (NIV)
This week we are beginning a new series called: “Encouragement That Works” as we study Wisdom Literature from the Bible. I am starting with the Book of Ecclesiastes. In this book I believe you will find a ‘Big Picture’ glimpse of encouragement which could impact your emotional makeup in a God-inspired way.
When I was in college studying research psychology, one of the interesting studies going on at my University and around the world was that of sensory deprivation. Typically, the subject would have their hearing and vision shut down, be floating in salt water at their exact body temperature so that they would be totally deprived of all physical senses. They are still doing experimentation in this area still today. The reason being that in our age of over-stimulation this quietness may have some therapeutic benefits that teach us about the human condition.
In another way, a glimpse of God’s expansive view of our troubles also changes our overloaded senses. When we feel his personal care, it heals us in a way that has not been fully researched. If you wrestle with depression or discouragement I want to say to you that you are a human being who cares. God cares for you and he inspired some books of the Bible targeted to give you wisdom to navigate your way through these troubled personal times. Please join me this weekend…For Encouragement That Works.
Your friend for the rest of my life,
Pastor Tim White