If you had one wish, what would it be? Would you wish for unlimited funds to buy whatever you wanted? Or maybe you’d just wish to have a little left over after you pay your bills? Or what about having the insight to easily navigate through life’s most difficult journeys?
What if you had both great wisdom and unlimited funds? How would you live your life, what would you do differently?
While it might be difficult for us to imagine, there was a man who had the best of both worlds. His experiences are recorded in the book of Ecclesiastes.
King Solomon, son of King David, was a man who had both great wealth and wisdom. Because of this, you might think he accomplished many amazing things in his life, and you would be right. But he also lived a life of excess and one that would make most of us blush. In addition to Ecclesiastes, you can also read about his not-so-great choices in 1 Kings.
Many scholars believe Solomon is the author of Ecclesiastes. In the book, he discusses what life is like having everything at his disposal. He took many wives and concubines, built houses and vineyards, but had enough wisdom to see that even at its best, life ends the same way for everyone. He eventually concluded that “Life is meaningless.”
Does it make sense for a man who has everything to ultimately decide that it will leave you feeling empty? From a secular worldview it doesn’t make sense, but from a biblical worldview, we understand what Solomon is saying.
God put a longing for Him in every one of our hearts, even those who don’t choose to know Him. Some will fill their lives with the same things Solomon did. Others will seek the more meaningful solution, a relationship with God, the living water that never leaves us thirsty. (John 4:14).
What is filling the hole in your heart? Does it leave you empty? If you relate to Solomon’s words, think about the things in your life you believe should satisfy you. Even the wisest man concluded the only thing in life that isn’t meaningless is “fearing God and keeping His commandments” (Ecclesiastes 12:13). If you don’t have a relationship with God, He is waiting for you to come to Him and He’s only a prayer away.
