Devotional on Ecclesiastes

2003 – Rocky Mtn Natl Park, Colorado

Ecclesiastes 6: We work to feed our appetites; meanwhile our souls go hungry.
Priority check
I read somewhere that the average American works 46 hours a week, with a significant number of people working over 50 hours a week. I probably don’t have to convince anyone that life is getting more, and not less, complicated. We Americans even work hard at playing. School sports are demanding enough but many children are involved in leagues beyond school. Itโ€™s a rare thing for most families to just be “doing nothing.” And what does this all get us? Frankly, I don’t have the feeling that people are happier and more satisfied in their lives. To me, this lifestyle has a lot in common with running on a treadmill: lots of activity that isn’t really taking us anywhere. Could it be that all of our busy-ness is an attempt to fill emptiness in our souls? There has to be more to life than work and weekends. There has to be a greater purpose than buying a bigger house or seeing that our kids get sports scholarships to good schools. Jesus said it this way: “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36) This passage reminds us to check our priorities with this in mind.
Take Away: All the activities in the world wonโ€™t do for us what a genuine relationship with the Lord will do.

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