Toiling After Riches Meaningless?

The older I get the more death becomes a reality, I lapse into more moments of thinking that life is as meaningless as Solomon would imply. Why all the years of toil, if it is to be gone in a second? Even if you have something to leave your offspring, how long will it last them? Do they follow in the way that they should go so that all that they say and thing and do will glorify God? Will their inheritance be wasted away on trivial stuff - fleeting moments of pleasure rather than those things that will bring real joy (that is glorifying God)? Will they appreciate all the years that you spent earning and saving it for them?

This toiling after riches is meaningless.

"Whoever loves money never has enough;
whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.
This too is meaningless.
As goods increase,
so do those who consume them.
And what benefit are they to the owners
except to feast their eyes on them?
The sleep of a laborer is sweet,
whether they eat little or much,
but as for the rich, their abundance
permits them no sleep.
I have seen a grievous evil under the sun:

wealth hoarded to the harm of its owners,
or wealth lost through some misfortune,
so that when they have children
there is nothing left for them to inherit.
Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb,
and as everyone comes, so they depart.
They take nothing from their toilthat they can carry in their hands.  (Eccl 5:10 - 15 NIV) 

That is not to say work is evil. We should work if we expect to eat. But, it becomes very bothersome, even a burden, when one works only to amass riches. Jesus told this story to a crowd who followed to listen to Him: 
 “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
  "Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain.  And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’
 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
  “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God." Luke 12:17-21

Our work should bring joy to us as well as to others. Live life! Enjoy the life that God has given you! Whether it is in the hours you spend laboring or during the hours you are relaxing with your friends and family, life here on earth is to be lived and enjoyed. Life, abundant life, is a gift from God.

"This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot. Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart." (Eccl 1:18-20).

While you are yet making your journey through this world focus not on amassing wealth or power to the exploitation of others, but on living life so that God may be glorified.

And... may the peace and joy that is found in being in relationship with God, our Father and with one another, through His Son, Jesus the Christ, be with you always.  Pr. J

Meaningless?

The older I get and death becomes more of a reality, I lapse into more moments of thinking that life is as meaningless as Solomon would imply. Why all the years of toil, if it is to be gone in a second? Even if you have something to leave your offspring, how long will it last them? Do they follow in the way that they should go so that all that they say and thing and do will glorify God? Will their inheritance be wasted away on trivial stuff - fleeting moments of pleasure rather than those things that will bring real joy (that is glorifying God)?

 This toiling after riches is meaningless.

"Whoever loves money never has enough;
whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.

This too is meaningless.

As goods increase,
so do those who consume them.
And what benefit are they to the owners
except to feast their eyes on them?
The sleep of a laborer is sweet,
whether they eat little or much,
but as for the rich, their abundance
permits them no sleep.
I have seen a grievous evil under the sun:

wealth hoarded to the harm of its owners,
or wealth lost through some misfortune,
so that when they have children
there is nothing left for them to inherit.
Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb,
and as everyone comes, so they depart.
They take nothing from their toilthat they can carry in their hands.  (Eccl 5:10 - 15 NIV) 

That is not to say that work is evil. We should work if we expect to eat. But, it becomes very bothersome, even a burden, when one works only to amass riches. Jesus told this story to a crowd who followed to listen to Him: 

 “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

  "Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain.  And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’

 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

  “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God." Luke 12:17-21

Our work should bring joy to us as well as to others. Live life! Enjoy the life that God has given you! Whether it is in the hours you spend laboring or during the hours you are relaxing with your friends and family, life here on earth is to be lived and enjoyed. Life, abundant life, is a gift from God.

"This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot. Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart." (Eccl 1:18-20).

Focus your journey here on earth, not on amassing wealth or power to the exploit of others, but on living life so that God may be glorified in all that you think and say and do.

And... may the peace and joy that is found in being in relationship with God, our Father and with one another, through His Son, Jesus the Christ, be with you always. 

God's Peace

Pr. J

Ridiculousness Is Not Joy

There is a television show called "Ridiculousness." It's apparently a hit since it has been running for a few years. I find it most ridiculous. I do not find watching people get hurt very funny. When a child falls down trying to ride their bike, it is cruel to laugh. When someone slips on the ice and falls, it is disrespectful to laugh.

 

I have nothing against laughing. But, as the Preacher wrote in Ecclesiastes 3:4: There is "a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance." Laughter comes with joy. Joy comes from goodness. It comes from the goodness of God. God shows us the path of life. In his presence there is fullness of joy; in his right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Prov 16:11)

 

On the other hand, to ridicule means to make fun of or, in more contemporary terms, to bully someone. Ridiculing someone else or yourself is not a Christian virtue. I know that it's 2016 and times have changed. But, I'm thinking that they probably haven't changed for the better when watching people get hurt or hurt themselves is suppose to be humorous entertainment.

 

God loves you. Love yourself. Love God. Love your neighbor as yourself. Please, don't sully that love with hurtful ridiculousness to either yourself or anyone else. Hurtfulness is not funny. It is folly. "Folly is a joy to one who has no sense, but a person of understanding walks straight ahead." (Prov 15:21)  That is, we walk straight ahead into a more glorious future when we walk in The Way of the Lord. That is where you will find real joy!

 

"There is a time to weep; and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a dance." May God grant us the wisdom to discern the times.

God's Peace - Pr. J
 

Enjoy Life With Your Wife!

 

"Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that are given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun."  Eccl 9:9

Nearing the end of my vacation with my husband, I wanted to cook out. I had planned to cook bratwursts over an open fire with marshmallows for desert. I did not realize that some NFL play-offs were on television at the same when I had suggested it. My husband did not say a thing about it. I figured it out when I went outside to see how the fire was going and he was standing before the fire pit checking the game on his telephone. He was multi-tasking. He managed both quite well. He managed to hang in there until supper was over before he retreated to the living room.

We have many common interests. But, we also have many uncommon interests. He enjoys football. I do not. I enjoy hiking and camping and kayaking. He does not. But, somehow we manage to find a way to enjoy life together.

May God bless all husbands and wives with the gift of enjoying life together.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Retired and Living Life!

Howard and his trike in Beaufort, SC
photo taken by son, John Arthur Mattson

"What gain have the workers from their toil? I have seen the business that God has given to everyone to be busy with. He has made everything suitable for its time; moreover he has put a sense of past and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I know that there is nothing better for them than to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live..." Eccl 3:9-12

Live life!  I can't even begin to count how many times I have told people to live life; enjoy life! I believe some think, "who is she kidding? She's a Christian and a pastor. What can she know about fun?"  My fun may not be like a lot of people's idea of fun; but, I do know about enjoying life; about enjoying the numberless gifts that God has given me.

My husband retired for the second time this past summer. He has not quite reached the normal retirement age. But, he has worked hard for a long time. Most of his years have been "on call" twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week as his first career was as a U.S. Marine and his second career was as owner/administrator of an adult foster care home. So, I finally convinced him that it was time to retire and enjoy life; to take time for himself. He has taken a few vacations since then. He is enjoying life. I know that he also took pleasure in the work that he did; but, now is his time to live life; to take the time to more fully enjoy the gifts that God has given him.

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.." Eccl 3:1

It is time to truly live life!

God's Peace - Pr. J

Ecclesiastes 7 - Live Lift; Quit Scheming

Solomon's search for wisdom; his search to discover the theme of things, seems to have left him just a little more than depressed! "Frustration is better than laughter, because a sad face is good for the heart." (Eccl 7:3 NIV)  From my own experience, frustration is not better than laughter. There is a time and a season and a place for both. Frustration, indeed, my help you to grow as you face the challenges before you; but, laughter lends itself to healing of the mind, the body, and the soul. It is good to do each in the appropriate time and place.

"Consider what God has done: Who can straighten what he has made crooked? When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider this: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, no one can discover anything about their future." (Eccl 7:13-14)

We will encounter both the good and the bad times in our journey here on earth. No one gets to be "happy, happy, happy" all the time and no one should be live their lives in constant sorrow or depression. "Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes." (Eccl 7:18b)

Solomon tested all things. With the wisdom he was allotted, he attempted to discover the scheme of all things. But, in the end here is what he found:  "...God created mankind upright, but they have gone in search of many schemes." (Eccl 7:29)

The search to figure out why humankind would work so hard their whole lives at scheming to make others so miserable is futile. Searching out the evil purposes of humankind will lead to depression. That is simply what we have chosen to do and only God can know why. God, and maybe each of us can search out our own hearts to figure out why it is we, personally, do so much scheming. We should search our hearts and our own minds, repent, and live the life that God intended for us to live, as children of His heavenly kingdom. Live life!

God's Peace - Pr. J

   

Ecclesiates 1 - Life Is Meaninless Without Love

Although there are those who would refute attributing Ecclesiastes to the writing of Solomon, the contents indicate that he was. For my part, I will proceed with the understanding that Solomon indeed wrote Ecclesiastes. After all, who would be the wise king, son of David, king in Jerusalem if it were not Solomon?  

"The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem." (Eccl 1:1 NIV)

"I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens." (Eccl 12, 13)

 

Solomon's search for knowledge and wisdom, brought him not an enlightenment that would satisfy, but depression. Solomon finds instead that everything under the sun, is meaningless. "For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief." (Eccl 1:18)

 

One of my mother's favorite sayings for when one of us kids did something stupid was: "No brains, no pains." Then she'd leave it at that. I'm not sure if that's the most appropriate thing to tell a child. But, we got the point. With wisdom and knowledge comes many opportunities; but, with opportunities comes many challenges and often some trying times. My mother's view was that accepting the opportunities and challenges that come with gaining wisdom and knowledge was worth the bit of hardship one might have to endure.

 

Solomon, on the other hand, who was wiser than any other man, has found that his seeking knowledge was meaningless in the end. In the end, every living thing under the sun dies. As we read through Ecclesiastes, I hope that we will come to the understanding that not everything is futile. But, that it is possible to strive for greater knowledge and wisdom, even while we enjoy the fruits of this life that God has given us. We are to live life, not just bury ourselves in seeking after knowledge. Books are good, but life is still to be enjoyed.

 

Another thing to remember about Solomon is that as he decided to marry foreign wives, he also decided to worship their gods, as well. This is not good. Worshipping false gods is utterly meaningless and a source of the emptiness that many feel. Solomon, I fear, lived a life as a seeker. He was seeking meaning for his life. It was a life devoid of real relationships founded on a relationship with the one true God, who gifted him with much wisdom. His life probably lacked love. After all, how lonely is the man who would need to have 700 wives and 300 concubines? I believe he was one who may have had wisdom, but not real relationships. Not with God and consequently not with the people around him. So we have a man, who has found that his pursuit of wisdom and knowledge was meaningless. He never really lived life.

 

May God grant you a greater relationship with Him and with those around you that you may live life more fully.

 

God's Peace - Pr. J