Life

If you must know the answer to every question about life and God before trusting in him, guess what? You will never trust in him. One thing we do know about the future is that death is certain. Here’s the main question. When your body has breathed its final breath, where will your soul go?

The “best” life. The life of the world’s heroes, those we look up to while we live under the sun, is grievous. When you finally get to where you think you want to go and get ready to grab what you’ve been chasing, you find that nothing is there. It is like striving after the wind. But…Jesus changes everything.

Solomon did not oppose doing things that count. He wasn’t against inventions, creativity, and people trying to make a difference. But Solomon is a realist. Whether you invest your time in work that is significant or whether you squander your days, the wise man and the fool are soon forgotten. After you die, your name is mentioned less and less.

But as he observed humanity and their busy pace, he found that just like the sun chased its tail, so people chased theirs. Things “done under heaven” become the same ole same ole. We just keep running on the “treadmill of our existence.”

This life is temporary, and every endeavor is fleeting. Solomon laments this fact throughout the book of Ecclesiastes. Life is like a breath, a vapor, like the fading smoke of what used to be a burning flame. Death marks a bold period at the end of life’s sentence. 

Life doesn’t always make sense. Some things we experience just don’t fit nicely into our box of expectations. We like to be in control, and we can control things we understand that fall into our line of thinking…but…when we can’t understand how and why things happen…the control eludes us.

So, here’s the question—are you chasing after the right things? Things that will last for eternity. Things that will honor God. Things that will point people to him. If you are not running in the right direction, chances are you’ll end up at the wrong destination. 

We are all “prone to wander,” and the decision we make when confronted is multi-layered. The decision not only impacts us but those around us. When we heed instruction, we show the “path to life” for others. When we ignore reproof, we lead “others astray.” It’s a pretty big decision, isn’t it?

With each step of faith, the way that was once confusing becomes clear; the path that was once dark is bright. The journey to heaven is a journey of faith…one step at a time.