Bigger Picture Moments: Chasing the Wind

So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (Ecclesiastes 2:17, NIV)

This week began in a hurry.  A bike race on Sunday, joining the Y and running errands on Monday, working out at the Y, visiting with a friend, and going to a home party on Tuesday, another workout at the Y and grocery shopping on Wednesday.  By Wednesday afternoon I was exhausted.  I had crammed as much as possible into the first half of my week and my body was telling me enough is enough.

Ted came home from work and I cried.  He held me and reminded me it was really going to be okay.  Out of sheer exhaustion, my thoughts were all muddled and confused.  I felt myself falling into the pit, the one where I am a failure as a mom, a wife, a daughter of the King.

I place all these expectations on myself and have so many ambitions for all the things I'm going to fill my days with.  I want to be the mom who has it all together, who can keep going, going, going without taking a break, who gives her children all the love and affection they need all day long without breaking down.  I want to be the wife who makes her home a quiet haven where her husband can come home to her cheerful heart ready to serve him after a long day of work.  I want to be the daughter who listens, obeys, and loves her Father in all things.

But I can't do any of these things without first remembering what is important, Who deserves my attention and my focus in all things.  And I most certainly can't do everything.  I am not a super-woman.  I am just me, a beloved, forgiven, child of the King.

Solomon wrote this verse in Ecclesiastes after trying to fill his life with so many things he thought would make him happy - pleasure, wine, projects, possessions, money, wisdom - and realized when his desires were satisfied that he was not satisfied.  "Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 2:11, NIV).  All these things he tried to fill up with were meaningless.  The satisfaction he received from each of these things was only temporary.  They could not stand up to eternity.

So, if all these things are meaningless, what is the point of living and enjoying life? 

What does the worker gain from his toil?  I have seen the burden God has laid on men.  He has made everything beautiful in its time.  He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.  I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.  That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil--this is the gift of God.  I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it.  God does it so that men will revere him. (Ecclesiastes 3:9-14, NIV)


God has given me so many blessings, so that I might enjoy them and be satisfied.  But, the satisfaction I must find is not in the things of this earth; my satisfaction needs to be in Him and the fact that the gifts I've been given are from Him.  So, today, instead of rushing from one thing to the next (although, in reality, it's hard not to be rushed going anywhere with two little ones), I'm going to enjoy the gifts He has given me - my children, my husband, our home, a kitchen full of fresh food, two vehicles so I can go places during the day while my husband is working, and enough money to provide for our needs and then some.

Thank you, Father, for reminding me that my satisfaction is not in the things of this world, but in You alone.  I want to enjoy the life You've given me, simply because You have given it to me.  Remind me today, when I become frustrated with whining children, a messy house, or the lack of time to do everything I want to do, that I am truly blessed, because You love me more than I deserve.  Show me how to love and enjoy every moment with my children and to show my husband the love You desire in a marriage through my actions, my words, and my disposition.  Lead me today, Lord, for this life is meaningless without You. 

Note: It never ceases to amaze me how God uses preaching to speak directly to my heart so often.  Our church is currently doing a series on Ecclesiastes and, because I was so exhausted and missed Wednesday night church, I listened to a sermon in the series I had missed.  God knew exactly what I needed to hear, even several days after the sermon was actually preached.  If you want to hear the sermons from the series too, go to this link for streaming audio.   

Go to Maegan's blog for more Bigger Picture Moments.