Day #26: Diversification

 Send your grain overseas, for after many days you will get a return. Divide your merchandise among seven or even eight investments, for you do not know what calamity may happen on earth. If the clouds are full of rain, they will empty themselves on the earth, and whether a tree falls to the south or to the north, the tree will lie wherever it falls. He who watches the wind will not sow, and he who observes the clouds will not reap. Just as you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones form in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything. Sow your seed in the morning, and do not stop working until the evening; for you do not know which activity will succeed— whether this one or that one, or whether both will prosper equally. (Ec 11:1-6)

When it comes to our time and resources, Solomon has some sound advice- diversification- though not all agree.  Warren Buffet has famously said, “Diversification is a protection against ignorance,” “[It] makes very little sense for those who know what they're doing.” I guess that is true if you have all your time to stare at your investments.  But for the average person, diversification is the rule.  So why would Solomon make this suggestion? Certainly, he saw what so many of us miss.  There is great uncertainty in the market.  All of life is uncertain.  One of the most common mistakes we make when planning is to think that things will always be as they are now.  Big mistake.  Because we can't count on the trends we see continuing, it is wise to diversify.

 

And what is true for our investments is also true for our time.  When speaking of success, Solomon advises to sow your seed in the morning, and in the evening.  You never know which activity will succeed. When we put all our eggs in one basket, we are asking for failure.  But what about the issue of specialization? Don't we want to become experts in our field?  Maybe, maybe not.  Many people have made the greatest contributions through their hobbies.  Consider the Wright brothers. Their main occupation was job-printing. They published several short-lived local newspapers. But they invented the airplane in their spare time.

 

And we need to remember that God is sovereign over our affairs.  Solomon said, "you do not know the work of God who makes everything."  We never know what God will bless.  It's natural to think it will be the thing that we give the most effort to, or the thing we most enjoy, or that which matches our gifts and abilities.  Quite often He does choose to bless these things, but not always.  If our efforts align with what God reveals in the scriptures, there is our best chance of success, but even that is not always guaranteed.

 

There are many plans in a person’s mind, but it is the counsel of the LORD which will stand. (Pr 19:21)

 

Questions to consider:

1. What are the advantages of specializing in one thing?  The disadvantages?

2. Are there any trends in the world today that have caught you off guard?

3. What do you consider to be the number one priority in your life?  Number two?  Number three?


Read on to Day #27

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