As a kindergartner, did you look up to the great big sixth graders who ruled the school? I sure did! Then I became a too cool sixth grader. Then I became a measly bottom of the food chain seventh grader. Then an eighth grader, top of the food chain again! Then back to the bottom as a freshman, looking up to the upper classman thinking, “One day, it’ll be my turn.” Then the day came and I ruled the high school, until I went to college. On and on the cycle went in school. What I did not realize then, was that the same cycle very much continues throughout life!
You’re new on the job. Then you’re the manager, then vice president, then president, then owner, then retired…
You watch others get married. Then it’s your turn. You watch other couples have babies. Then it’s your turn. You watch their kids grow up. Then yours grow up. You watch people become grandparents. Then you become a grandparent. You watch their grandkids grow up. Then your grandkids grow up…
You’re the top of the food chain as an owner at your business. You’re a beloved grandparent. You have it all. Then you retire. Then you’re back at the bottom as the new kid on the block in the Breakfast Club you join. Then you work your way up to be the leader. Then you’re the newbie at the nursing home. Then you watch your friends move from life to death. Then eventually, it’s your turn.
What I just described is one of the many cycles that Ecclesiastes 1 describes as “meaningless.” Our life is but a breath!
““Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever” (Ecclesiastes 1:2-4).
It’s like the saying by C.T. Studd, who lived over a century ago, “Only one life, twill soon be past, only what’s done, for Christ will last” (Only One Life ‘Twill Soon be Past). Interestingly enough, that saying has lasted. That little ditty by that missionary has outlived him for over a hundred years! But what does it mean? Why, just what it says! Life is short, and most of it is meaningless. But there’s one thing in which we do that gives our lives meaning and that will outlive even us. What’s that one thing? It’s a relationship with Jesus. It’s living for Jesus.
Is life meaningless? The short answer is: yes. The longer answer is: without God, yes. However, with God, our daily lives have meaning and purpose. With God, we are working for an eternal Kingdom that will never fade away or perish. When we live for God and for His purposes, our work and our lives and work outlive us. God’s purposes are eternal. Therefore, when we join Him in what He’s doing, we will see ripple effects through generations to come.
