Chasing The Wind — Morning Devotions

Subscribe to the ‘Morning Devotions’ Podcast

Transcript

This is found in the Old Testament part of the Bible before Jesus, and it’s written by someone who is known as the wisest man who ever lived. Here he was, King Solomon, the son of King David, who reigned in Israel for 40 years. And after King David died, King Solomon was next to reign as the 3rd king of Israel.

And he asked God for wisdom over riches or power, and because of this, God blessed him with everything that he wanted and more. King Solomon, here he was, a man who had it all wisdom, money, power, and lots of women.

He looked for meaning and purpose and accomplishment. He had lots of parties, undertook great projects, planted gardens, and built buildings. He accumulated slaves, as they did in those days, flocks of animals, money, and a harem. He never stopped. He didn’t deny himself anything, took delight in all that he did. Of all the many things he tried, surprisingly, he concluded that they had no permanent value. He had more money than Bill Gates. He had more power than anyone in his culture.

And he accomplished great things. He had an illustrious career, and to put it in our terms today, he was successful in every way. But I find his thoughts intriguing. Towards the end of his life, he wrote,

I’ve seen everything that’s done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity, a chasing after the wind.

He came to a point in his life when he realised that everything was meaningless, like trying to catch the wind. You’ll never catch the wind.

Human life is more than what one can see or touch in the moment. There is a supernatural sovereign element to all that we are and what we do. If we do not acknowledge God as the sovereign one, then unfortunately life becomes empty and will be like chasing the wind. Life is more than a horizontal expression. Man should live and act with the joy that God is using His life far beyond what the present moment may reveal, even if we don’t realise it.

Solomon put it this way, God has made everything fit beautifully in its appropriate time so that people cannot discover what God has ordained. That’s chapter 3, verse 11. So when man views his life and life experiences from God’s perspective, his futile life outlook will be reversed, and instead of chasing the wind, he will find enjoyment in his toil as a gift from God. Yes, this life is temporary, regardless of how much you have accumulated or what you’ve accomplished or how well you’ve lived.

Hope 103.2 is proudly supported by

We’ll leave it all behind one day. Are we living for eternal things or temporary things.

All our toys, accomplishments, bank accounts, fame and glory will vanish, and there will probably be no remembrance of you or me in a few generations from now. As the early church father John Christendom put it –

If you knew how soon people will forget you after you die, you would do nothing in your life but please God.

We always want to be like someone else or have what someone else has got, but this is what Solomon calls a chasing after the wind. It just doesn’t accomplish anything. God created you how you are, and He’s given you what you have, and you must be thankful and learn to be content. So this book of Ecclesiastes ultimately teaches us that life is anchored not under the sun but in eternity.

Our health, wealth that can be lost, but God will not lose His people. Our bodies and our bank accounts will perish, but the one who does the will of the Lord will live forever. We follow Jesus through the uncertainties of this life, but we can receive some advice from this preacher Solomon as his life draws to an end.

He said, Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

So if you want to be happy, consider this – what is real happiness? It’s an ache inside that God intended. It’s trying to fill that empty hole with more of God.

One author says happiness comes not from trying to make the world satisfy all your desires, but from realising that it never will. Happiness begins to glimpse new dimensions when you discover that everything is never enough. And so it was for Solomon. Despite his extraordinary wealth and talent. It was never enough.

God was the only one who could give him satisfaction and enjoyment, and so it is for us today.

Let’s Pray

Dear Lord, how important it is for us to stop chasing the wind. Just because we might have all the things that we enjoy doesn’t guarantee inner happiness and peace. Help us, Lord, to understand some of these important truths, and may that be so today. I pray for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Feature image: Canva