“I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.”
Ecclesiastes 3:12
In chapters 1, 2, 3, 5, and 8 of Ecclesiastes, we hear the repeated refrain, “Be happy.” It’s somewhat surprising since the book speaks much about the vanity of worldly pursuits and can sound despairing in its other refrain: “This too is meaningless.”
But what a welcomed charge this is, to be happy and take pleasure as long as you live. That is a gift to us from God! It’s OK to enjoy the fruit of your hand, to make plans and rejoice to see them come together in the end. How wonderful to build or fashion something and delight in it. We can relish even the simple things of life: eating and drinking, watching a sunset, holding a baby, and so on. From our very young years and on to our “old age and gray hairs”— as Isaiah phrases it in 46:4—the Lord has placed beautiful things in our daily lives.
God made us to be people who would find pleasure and experience joy. But it is joy found in the Creator of all things rather than in the created things themselves. When we treasure Jesus supremely and then enjoy His gifts, our hearts overflow with thanks.
But what a welcomed charge this is, to be happy and take pleasure as long as you live. That is a gift to us from God! It’s OK to enjoy the fruit of your hand, to make plans and rejoice to see them come together in the end. How wonderful to build or fashion something and delight in it. We can relish even the simple things of life: eating and drinking, watching a sunset, holding a baby, and so on. From our very young years and on to our “old age and gray hairs”— as Isaiah phrases it in 46:4—the Lord has placed beautiful things in our daily lives.
God made us to be people who would find pleasure and experience joy. But it is joy found in the Creator of all things rather than in the created things themselves. When we treasure Jesus supremely and then enjoy His gifts, our hearts overflow with thanks.
Scripture Focus
Ecclesiastes 3:12-14
Insight
“For the beauty of the earth,/ … for the love which from our birth/ over and around us lies./ Christ, our Lord, to you we raise/ this, our hymn of grateful praise.” (Folliott S. Pierpoint, 1864)
Bible In A Year
- Joshua 15-16
- Psalm 104
- Romans 1-2