Get ready to start a journey…a journey through the pages of the Bible and the pages of your life.
Solomon counted his hours, measured the family sacrifices, thought of all the sleepless nights worrying about an upcoming deadline, and concluded that it was all useless. There “was nothing to be gained under the sun.” Looking through humanistic eyes, he found that there was nothing to show at the end of the day for the physical and emotional toll caused by work.
What does a man gain by engaging in work? What benefits come from marketing, sales, owning a business, designing processes, and making products? Not much! That’s Solomon’s “under-the-sun” perspective. A generation works until they die, followed by the next generation that does the same thing.
Finally, our vocation is a gift from God. Every day we should do our work in a way that honors him. Sure, we have a boss and performance reviews, but at the end of the day, only one review will matter. The Scottish pastor and Bible scholar Harry Ironside worked for a cobbler when he was a boy…
The original readers of this passage did not see a flippant formula. They understood that offering plans to Yahweh was a distinct act of worship and faith. They did so prayerfully and humbly. Let’s do the same.
Whether in marriage or parenting, whether in the workplace or in relationships with friends, the believer is committed to a higher standard. People of integrity always keep their word.