Tag Archives: Book of Ecclesiastes

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 13, 2010 by | 2 Comments

Ecclesiastes 12: Fear God. Do what he tells you. And that’s it.
When all is said and done…
The book of Ecclesiastes is about a wise man’s search for meaning. That search takes on a pessimistic flavor as he tries one thing and then another, concluding that it’s all just “smoke” that quickly vanishes. As he nears his conclusion he says that life passes quickly as the body begins to wear out. In other words, life, in general, is just so much smoke. Obviously, this book is not a Gospel. It doesn’t conclude with a resurrection and words of hope. Instead, it simply winds down with the big questions left pretty much unanswered. Well, kind of. When Solomon has considered everything from constructing impressive buildings to collecting words of wisdom, from living a pleasure-focused life to making the most of one’s youth he concludes that it’s all smoke. Basically he says that everything that people think brings meaning to life can be dismissed as failing to live up to expectations. Now, in his final words, he concludes that meaning must come from outside of all that. The book of Genesis starts with “In the beginning, God….” This book of Ecclesiastes concludes with “In the end, God….” Meaning to life only comes through the Creator of life. Really, Solomon has done the best he could do at this point in history. There’s more, in fact a whole lot more, but we have to turn ahead in time to those Gospels I mentioned for that part of the story.

→ 2 Comments

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 12, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ecclesiastes 11: Even if you live a long time, don’t take a single day for granted.
Delight in the light
A light reading of Ecclesiastes (if such a thing is really possible) leaves me with the feeling that the writer is a hardened pessimist who’s concluded that everything is “vanity.” While there are plenty of statements about how worthless things are, there’s also a positive, yet realistic theme here. He advises me to cherish every day. Some days, he says, are going to be dark, but there’s also plenty of light and I’m to “delight in the light.” I don’t want to be one of those people who only focuses on all that is going (or can go) wrong. God has blessed me with so much! I don’t want to take any of it for granted. True to form, the wise man adds, “most of what comes your way is smoke.” That is, most things in life are temporary, and a high percentage of those things aren’t all that important anyway. On one hand then, I don’t want to get so focused on the problems of life that I lose sight of the blessings. Those problems are pretty much “smoke” anyway and are temporary. On the other hand, I want to appreciate the little blessings while I have them. They too are smoke and will be gone before I know it and I don’t want to take them for granted.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 11, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ecclesiastes 11: Don’t sit there watching the wind, Do your own work.
Watching the wind
The wise man of Ecclesiastes says that when the clouds are so full of water that they can’t hold it anymore that it rains. When the wind is strong enough to blow down a tree, well, down it comes. In other words, things happen when they’re ready to happen. Sitting around waiting on them is a waste of time; time that could be spent doing something worthwhile. We spend a lot of time dreaming about things happening that will only happen when the time is right. Meanwhile, there’s living to do. The farmer might hope for rain, but he isn’t to sit out in the field watching the sky, instead he gets on with the work he can do right now. There’s nothing wrong with looking forward to some future blessing and even taking a quick look to the horizon to see if it’s in sight yet. However, our lives aren’t to come to a stop while we wait. The issue isn’t “what’s God going to do?” Rather it’s, “what’s God doing right now and how can I work with him in doing it?” Staring at the clouds is a waste of time; we need to “get on with…life.”

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 10, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ecclesiastes 11: Be generous: Invest in acts of charity. Charity yields high returns.
Return on investment
The Lord is wonderfully generous to us. He’s given us the world and all its beauty and life itself. His greatest gift to us is salvation. This gift cost him everything as is seen at the cross. This is God’s investment in us and his charity toward us. Solomon says “charity yields high returns.” God gave everything and he has every right to expect big returns on his investment. What is the return he expects? He expects human beings to respond to his great act of charity by giving their hearts to him in loving devotion. From the very beginning God has desired willing fellowship from us. That relationship is so valuable to the Lord that he gave everything (invested everything) that that relationship might be restored. It is my positive response to that sacrifice; my responding in love and thanksgiving, and my walking in continued fellowship with the Lord that he considers to be a “high return.”

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 9, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ecclesiastes 10: Dead flies in perfume make it stink, and a little foolishness decomposes much wisdom.
Good theology from Johnny Cash
The “dead flies” line always struck me as funny, especially when I first read it as a teen. At that time I didn’t take time to try to understand the meaning of it so I just smiled and moved on. A person can say and do a lot of wise things in their life, but one blunder can pretty much ruin it all. I’ve seen that happen with presidents and pastors; with CEO’s and secretaries. When my son got his first driver’s license I commented to him that many drivers only make one mistake in their lives, and it’s their last. Car wrecks can be unforgiving. It’s true of other life situations too. A man can be a good husband and father for 30 years, and then get involved with someone for a brief fling that ruins all those years of faithfulness. While I’m a big believer in second chances and grace I also know that a few “dead flies” can ruin a lot of godly living. Johnny Cash wasn’t singing a hymn when he sang, “I keep a close watch on this heart of mine…because you’re mine I walk the line” but his words do apply in that sense. I don’t want a few “dead flies” to ruin a lifetime of faithfulness.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 8, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ecclesiastes 9: God takes pleasure in your pleasure!
God, enjoying life with me
I know that a common view of God is that he’s against our enjoying life and that his favorite word is “no!” That is very mistaken. It’s true that God has a lot of “no’s” for us. Then again, a loving father has a lot of “no’s” for his children too. When his toddler picks something up off the floor and is about to put it in his mouth his mom and dad say, in chorus: “No!” Their desire is not to ruin his life, but to protect him from something that might be downright hazardous to his health. Even so, the Lord has some prohibitions for us and every one of them is for our benefit. The other side of the coin is wonderfully positive. When I enjoy some new discovery, or take pleasure in one of God’s many gifts to us; when I laugh out loud as one of my precious grandchildren comes up with a terrific one liner — at that moment God laughs with me. The writer of Ecclesiastes struggles with the meaning of life and in trying to understand just what it is that will bring real satisfaction. However, he has this one just right: “God takes pleasure in your pleasure!”

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , , , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 7, 2010 by | 1 Comment

Ecclesiastes 8: I’m still convinced that the good life is reserved for the person who fears God…and that the evil person will not experience the “good” life.
Good people and good things
The conventional wisdom of Solomon’s day (and it is often still conventional wisdom today) is that bad people have bad things happen to them and good people have good things happen to them. In his wisdom Solomon sees considerable evidence that this approach isn’t true. He sees wicked people live pretty nice lives and he even attends some funerals in which it appears that the person “got away with it” living an evil life yet having everything a person could ask for right to the very end. He has plenty of evidence that the common belief of “bad gets bad and good gets good” doesn’t really work. Still, though, he can’t quite give up on it. While he can’t prove that it’s true, he can’t shake the belief that there’s some truth in this philosophy. He reports, “I’m still convinced….” Today, I think Solomon is right to hang on to this belief. It doesn’t play out as he thought it would but I agree with him that serving God has great advantages. It isn’t that those who trust God have more money and better health but in the intangibles of life there are riches for God’s people. There’s wealth in going to sleep at night knowing that no matter what tomorrow brings things will be okay. There’s wealth in being at peace with God and there’s wealth in knowing one is a child of the King. I believe the conventional wisdom is both right and wrong. It’s right in its belief that good things happen to good people. It’s wrong in having such a narrow and material view of just what those good things are.

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 6, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ecclesiastes 8: No one can control the wind or lock it in a box…as long as men and women have the power to hurt each other, this is the way it is.
Trying to lock up the wind
I’m not sure that the writer intends for me to associate these two statements but they tie together for me. I’ve seen people make bad choices. If I ask them about it, they’ll most often have someone or something to blame for what they’re doing. I’m not saying that everyone else is always innocent in some of these things but the bottom line is that people pretty much do what they want to do. Sadly, even when I see what’s going on I can’t force people to do the right thing. As Ecclesiastes says, “no one can control the wind.” Well, neither can one control the hearts of others. The very fact that I love people, encourage them, and help them through their darkest hour means that I also give them the power to hurt me. At some level I have to just let things go (the writer says, “This is the way it is”) and protect my own heart. When I’ve done all I’ve been allowed to do, and when my heart has been broken, I come to the place where I have to let go and entrust those I “can’t control” to the hands of a gracious God. He’s able to work through issues if he’s given an opportunity, even after I’ve been removed from the situation.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 5, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ecclesiastes 7: God made men and women true and upright; we’re the ones who’ve made a mess of things.
The purpose of life
As part of his search for purpose Solomon searches for people of wisdom. The result of his search is disappointing. He reports that not one person in a thousand measures up to that standard. Solomon is looking for people of depth, who have thought out the meaning of life and come to some conclusions. Instead, he finds that most people stay in the shallow end of the pool, never considering much beyond their next meal. The saddest thing, as far as he is concerned, is that it doesn’t have to be that way. The Creator created humans with the potential for greatness. This isn’t about the possibility of solving the mysteries of science. Instead, it’s about finding meaning to life itself. It’s of great value to consider “why I am here and where I am going.” The answer is the one we seem most intent on ignoring: “God.” It’s my connection to the divine that gives meaning to my life. He not only made me, but he made me for a purpose. When I live without recognizing that, I, in the words of Ecclesiastes, make “a mess of things.”

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , , ,

Devotional on Ecclesiastes

Posted on October 4, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ecclesiastes 7: Sages invest themselves in hurt and grieving.
Investing in painful circumstances
I know its human nature to want to hurry past the difficulties of life. No one wants to spend the rest of their days dealing with some painful situation. However, I also know that just about everyone has their share of “hurt and grieving.” In fact, some folks have more than their share of such things. Some of the finest people I know carry a burden of broken health, broken dreams, and painful loss with them every day. I’ve noticed that, for some, those difficulties somehow deepen them. They know how to enjoy life, but there’s an attractive stability and perspective on life in them. The writer of Ecclesiastes says that we’re wise to invest something of ourselves in those challenging parts of life. When I make an investment, I give something of value because I expect to get a return on my investment. When I go through the darkness, I tend to rush through it as quickly as possible. This portion of Ecclesiastes reminds me that there’s something for me even there if I’ll trust the Lord enough to give myself to such difficulties.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Pastor Scott

Tagged , , , , ,