End of an Era

There’s an opportune time to do things,
a right time for everything on the earth:
A right time for birth and another for death,
A right time to plant and another to reap,
A right time to kill and another to heal,
A right time to destroy and another to construct,
A right time to cry and another to laugh,
A right time to lament and another to cheer,
A right time to make love and another to abstain,
A right time to embrace and another to part,
A right time to search and another to count your losses,
A right time to hold on and another to let go,
A right time to rip out and another to mend,
A right time to shut up and another to speak up,
A right time to love and another to hate,
A right time to wage war and another to make peace.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 MSG

THOUGHT: I love these beautiful words of Solomon and they are not only beautiful in form, they are wise in substance. For example, Paul tells the Romans, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all (Rom. 12:18),” indicating that there is also a time to “wage war” as Solomon put it. He was a king, after all, and had lived through a few times when peace broke down.

In order to live a life of shalom, the Hebrew word that encompasses so much more than peace, we must attend to all of Solomon’s list of times and seasons of life. Although it has been translated as simply “hello,” the real meaning of shalom is closer to wholeness than simply “hello” or “peace” – it includes complete wellbeing of heart, mind, spirit, even finances. A sort of tranquility, an old-fashioned word not often found in current culture (nor its substance).

An example from Scripture is the following verse from Genesis where the word shalom is translated three different ways: well-being, well, and in good health: Then he asked them about their well-being, and said, “Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?” And they answered, “Your servant our father is in good health; he is still alive. (NKJV Gen 43:27-28)

So, that’s a long way to say that my own shalom needs to include embracing of new and parting from old, some searching for what is lost as well as some counting of losses, some holding on and some letting go, some shutting up and a different kind of speaking up. This weekday devotion has been so good for me, but for a lot of reasons, I believe it’s time to let go and keep moving into whatever God has for me next. I intend and hope to continue blogging and writing and songwriting, but it won’t be so consistent, and eventually, it may not be in this space. It represents a loss to me (and hopefully you), and I am definitely counting that loss, but it’s also a time to recalibrate and seek shalom in new ways.

It’s hard to believe this all started out on March 17, 2020. I had no idea I could or would write so steadily for four years, I just kept asking God to give me something to say – and he did. If you want to wander down memory lane, here’s where it all started: https://asipoblog.com/2020/03/17/lost-found/. If you want to keep up with me, let me know; and say a prayer for shalom … mine … your own … and the world as we know it.

PRAYER: Oh God of shalom, we are so far from wholeness in our world. Help each reading this today to use the light you’ve placed in us to be shalom bringers, wherever you put us down, whatever your will for our lives. Thank you for these readers, some who’ve been along since the beginning; they don’t need me, they need you – and I pray you’ll answer the need of each heart.

FINAL WORD: “Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in every way.” (2 Thessalonians 3:16).