Qoheleth [3:1-3] wisely observed: "There is a season for everything, a time for every occupation under heaven¡K. There is a time to build and a time to destroy." Much human wisdom and practical common sense is engaged in discerning the appropriate time to do things.

It was the year 520 B.C. God had brought the Jewish exiles back home from Babylonia to re-establish Jewish religious life in Judea, with its centre in the Temple in Jerusalem. No doubt they came back with much hope and enthusiasm. As frequently happens when we try to engage in God's work, however, they encountered many difficulties and obstacles. They lost hope and became despondent; they began to say "This is not the time to rebuild the house of the Lord."

God comes into our lives when we are most in need of encouragement. So the word of the Lord came to Haggai, and he was able to encourage the people by discerning for them: their lives were unsatisfying because they looked to themselves and neglected God. Haggai commanded them: "Consider your ways". Only by reflecting on themselves and their lives would they be able to put aside their self-centred interests and listen to the guidance of God.