Previous Reflections
REFLECTIONS
March 10th, 2013Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."
What does man gain from all his labor
at which he toils under the sun?
Ecclesiastes 1:2-3
To Be or Not To Be
“To be or not to be, that is the question…” Hamlet pondered about his life and whether to face its future. The question led him to wonder about life beyond the boundaries of this one and the mysteries it holds. And in my own musings of Hamlet’s question I was drawn to contrast the thoughts of “the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem” expressed in Ecclesiastes. What does man gain from all his labor…?
Indeed what is life really all about as we awaken each day to the challenges before us, and the opportunities presented? What is the basis for the choices we select? And will those choices serve a more enduring cause than personal possessions, power, or pleasure? Meaningless, meaningless, the Teacher found those to be—“a chasing after the wind.” Hamlet questioned the reason for being. The Teacher found no meaning in what he had been doing—a chasing after the wind.
Most of us seek a life that makes a difference—a form of immortality. We cherish life and cling to it with innate passion. Yet we know that our earthly lives will surely end and all that will remain of our time on earth will be some small part of ourselves that we leave behind. And that legacy is less about what we did than who we were.
The Teacher figured it out:
…here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the whole [duty] of man. (Ecclesiastes 12:13)
God commands us to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.” (Luke 10:27) His Son set the example when He came into the world in the likeness of man. He entered the world in a humble setting, possessed nothing his entire life, and sought nothing for himself. Yet no one has left such a powerful legacy. He loved his Father and submitted to his every desire. And He loved his friends with a willingness to die an excruciating death that they might live.
To be or not to be is not really the question; and the Teacher tells us that selfish pursuits in this world are meaningless. But reflecting the Savior…
Well that way of life will leave a mark for generations.
You are the light of the world,
Richard+
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