“I said in my heart, "Come now, I will test you with pleasure; enjoy yourself." But behold, this also was vanity.”
(Ecclesiastes 2:1)
When you look through chapter two you see that Solomon wasn’t seeking God, but self-fulfillment. The first five words of verse two tell it all, “I said in my heart…” There may be no “I” in “Team”, but there sure is one big “I” in chapter two…Solomon. He had decided to take his riches & power & indulge himself with everything, good or bad, that he could think of, to fulfill his life, the same as we often do.
A businessman becomes a workaholic to fill the hole of pride. A girl finds only guys who want empty sexual relationships, while trying to fill the hole of love never received from an absent father. A drug addict gets high to fill the hole of low self-esteem; a spouse cheats to fill the hole of loneliness. A church member takes on the straw that “strains” the camel's back to fill the hole of self-righteousness. A drink to relax, one more tattoo to stand out, a nicer car to hang with the Jones', another surgery to look younger, a pill to make you happy, social networking to feel needed, staying busy to forget, revealing clothing for attention, trying it once to fit in...AHHHH!!! It's enough to drive you crazy.
When we do things to fill the holes of emptiness in our lives, good or bad, instead of turning to God for the filling…we will always come to the same conclusion Solomon did…it is all “vanity”, it doesn’t last. So we find ourselves having to continue to do those things trying to get self-fulfillment & all they bring is more of the same: harder work, more addictions, emptier loneliness, never giving satisfaction, but always giving more of the same…emptiness.
God wants to work through the hard times in your life. He wants you to allow Him to solve your problems. He wants you to stop trying to solve them yourself & fall back into His arms, His care, His peace. Let Him fill those empty holes & stop trying to distract yourself with the things of this world. Real fulfillment will only come through a life sold out to Jesus. A life that says “Here I am Lord, send me”. Not that it will be a bed of roses or without storms, but the holes…He will fill everyone. Turn to Him, He’s waiting on you.
Vern
