“A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;”

Ecclesiastes 3:3

There is a time to kill something and a time to heal and bestow life. A time to take things down and a time to build them up.

A time when life should end and a time when it should continue. A time to destroy something and a time to renew it.

These are another set of pairs of opposites to make us think about the context in which we do things.

Solomon pits the two opposites against each other and shows how they are part of the same whole. He is showing us that everything joins up and that there are really no separate issues, but all come together as a holistic whole, that is life. God reveals it in the Word, and we can learn especially from such books as Ecclesiastes.

One of the premiere battle grounds of life and death, is the human mind. We must guard our minds against all that would infiltrate it and cause it to be idle or consider things that are too great for us. Our thoughts are centred on the Word of God, and as we learn it and know it, it makes us wise. Our decisions and choices are based on it’s wisdom and so we fight a war in the mind and heart to keep us in the love of God. There is a time to kill thoughts that are troubling us and leading us into wrong thought patterns and therefore will undermine our wisdom. We don’t need to know all the answers, but trust in God to guide and teach as we live our lives and make our decisions. He is our ever loving God and will mould our hearts and minds to His purposes.

When our mind gets troubled, we seek refuge in the Lord and the promises of the Word. We seek healing for the mind and the ability to sort out our pains and difficulties with the wisdom that we have learned in difficulties gone before. God will never leave us without a way of escape and a place fo refuge where we can go. No matter what we face, there is a place of healing and succour.

“The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? When evildoers came at me to eat up my flesh, even my adversaries and my foes, they stumbled and fell. Though an army should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear. Though war should rise against me, even then I will be confident…”

Psalm 27:1-3

The Lord will help us to know when it is time to put a stop to thought processes and when we need healing. His wisdom is good and does us good.

Then we go wrong, there is a time to turn away from evil and change out behaviour and trust God enough to follow Him and rely completely on His guidance and timing for all things. He will not let us suffer unnecessarily but will be there to help us and encourage us with thoughts and memories and the gracious presence of the Holy Spirit. He will help us to pull down the strongholds that would swamp our lives and bring us down, and He will help us to build the citadel of our soul, so that we are safe and secure in our relationship with Him. Our Saviour, Jesus has saved us and will keep us to the end.