‘There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven.’ Ecclesiastes 3:1

‘My times are in your hands.’ Psalm 31: 15

Millions of people in the world believe the first of these statements, but not the second. Without the second truth, people think of being ‘lucky’ or ‘unlucky’, ‘fortunate’ or ‘unfortunate’ and place their hopes on ‘fate’ or ‘chance’. This can lead them into gambling such as the lottery, purchasing raffle tickets, entering those competitions which are so prevalent today where the prize is awarded, not to the person who knows something that no-one else does, but to someone who knows something that everyone else does, and the prize depends on your answer being drawn first. It also can lead to superstitious practices such as counting magpies, throwing salt and sidestepping ladders, etc.

The less superficial and more ‘sophisticated‘, dismiss this and say that everything happens randomly - ‘without rhyme or reason’, as we say. This can lead to despondency and depression, as such people conclude that ‘everything is meaningless’.

Some have tried to find a position in between - in Deism. They claim that there is a God but, after He created the earth, He sat back and let it operate according to scientific laws. He started the clock but let it run, without divine intervention. Such people often find it difficult to cope with setbacks and disasters and, because they think they cannot come into contact with God, they can have no communion with Him or comfort from Him.

As Bible believing Christians, we reject all three: chance, random theory and Deism. We hold these two truths together:

‘There is a time for everything’

and

‘My times are in your hands.’

As we should always do when we want to understand Scripture, we let each verse interpret the other. We believe that there is an ordained and appointed time for everything that happens and it is determined by a loving, wise and powerful God.

This is not a world of chance or fate. In the larger scope of the history of redemption, there was a fixed time for Israel’s deliverance from Egypt and for her return from Babylon:

"Now the length of time the Israelite people lived in Egypt was 430 years. At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the Lord’s divisions left Egypt." (Exodus 12:41)

"In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, in order to fulfil the word of the Lord, spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved in the heart of Cyrus, king of Persia, to make a proclamation" to build a temple of the Lord, the God of Israel. (Ezra 1:1).

Similarly, there was an appointed time for the coming of Christ into the world: "But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born under the Law, to redeem those under the Law." (Galatians 4:4).

Yes, perhaps we can accept the big picture. But what about the apparently trivial? All events - even the most casual, things that we do every day, that seem to be in our own power - are, they in fact, overruled? Look at Matthew 10:29-31: "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Not one of them will fall to the ground, apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are numbered. So do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows." This is Scripture truth no matter what age we are (or how many hairs are on our head!).

Are you a young person? You have so much energy and enthusiasm yet it seems that other people make decisions for you: your parents, your teachers at school, the church, and the laws of the land. Perhaps you feel that others dictate the way things have to be? Sometime you can see the point and can accept it. Perhaps, at other times, you think, "That’s not fair!" But God holds all things in His hands and works all things out for the good of those that He has caused to love Him. Be like Joseph, whose situation was much worse than yours. He could say to his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good." (Gen 50:20).

Are you a mature person? At this stage, you are at your most vigorous, effective and productive. Yes, you can accomplish a lot. But you also experience setbacks, frustrations, opposition, rejection and misunderstanding. Does that mean that God has abandoned you? Not at all. Victory and defeat are both controlled by God.

Are you an elderly person? You have experience on your side. If only people would ask you for advice. You cannot start new enterprises now at this stage in life. Do you feel neglected? Remember God knows and cares for you and others are observing your faith and your acceptance of what God has ordained at this stage in your life.

The Catechism teaches us that:

"God’s works of providence are His most holy, wise and powerful preserving and governing all His creatures, ordering them and all their actions, to His own glory."