“For who can eat or enjoy anything apart from Him?” Ecclesiastes 2:25
One of the top things I enjoy doing is getting out for a nice walk, and especially right here where I live in the charming little town of Washington, or as some may call it, “Little Washington.” Beautiful historic homes of various sizes line the streets, some dating as far back as the 1700’s, while most are from the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. Thoughts and questions go through my mind as I walk past these homes. Who lived there? What were their lives like back in that era? What would these houses say if they could speak? What memories do they hold? The Christmases past, the Thanksgiving tables, the children who were born there, and played in the yards and up and down the sidewalks. I can only imagine. But one thing I know for sure, most all of those folks who lived in those dwellings back then aren’t here anymore.
Solomon, with all his wisdom, had lots of questions. He set out to find the meaning and true purpose of life through various studies, endeavors, and even pleasures. But with all of that, he came away with a simple, yet profound, conclusion. Life here on this earth is short and marked with only a limited number of seasons and times. No matter how long one lives, it’s still just like we’re here today and gone tomorrow. And when it comes right down to it, life in and of itself, without God, is meaningless. Solomon expresses this in Ecclesiastes 2:25. No matter how rich, educated, knowledgeable, well-liked, or well-known we may become in this life, without God it all really means nothing.
Paul talked about a certain and specific time – the “Time of salvation.” Quoting Isaiah, the Prophet Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 6:2 “For God says, ‘At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you’.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.
Today, may we be reminded that life here on earth really is short and only truly meaningful and purposeful with Christ – knowing Him, having a relationship with Him, and living in an awareness of how greatly and deeply we are loved by Him