NOW! Wednesday, November 19, 2008

I have been reading lately in one of my favorite books in the Bible… Ecclesiastes.  It’s one of those writings that I always ran away from because the name seemed a little “stuffy”.  I’m not kidding.  I didn’t read the book because the title was somewhat stale and uninviting.  A few years ago, I picked it up and forced myself to begin working through it, and I now draw inspiration from that book almost daily.  In fact, Ecclesiastes is one of the propelling writings that drew me in to a ministry minded effort.

In my struggle to find faith and to hang on to a faithful life, I felt like no one understood what I was facing.  I tend to be a little too much of a thinker when it comes to faith in God, creation, and purpose.  For years I wrestled with the notion of intangible things and “feeling”.  I felt that surely there was a way that I could wrap my mind around what it is that I’m supposed to be doing.

I am willing to bet that if you are a man of faith… or you have been a faithful guy in the past… you’ve wondered, what in the world am I doing here and how am I supposed to work out this God thing?  I am willing to wager a few bucks that you’ve decided at one point in your life that “it’s just too complicated and frustrating to figure out what God wants me to do”.

Let me give you a word – Ecclesiastes.

This book of Ecclesiastes was believed to have been written by Solomon.  And if you recall anything about King Solomon, you’ll probably remember that he was known for his immense wisdom.  When you read through this great writing, you will actually feel the struggle, frustration, and determination of Solomon as he attempts to figure out…. The meaning of life.

You’ve been there.  I’ve been there.  I’m certain that we will go back there from time to time.  Each time I begin wondering… “what is this all about?” I turn back to Ecclesiastes and get re-confirmed and re-focused.

If the wisest man that we know has struggled through the meaning of existence and what God wants out of our lives… then I should probably pay attention to what he came up with.  (SPOLIER ALERT) I’m going to give away the ending here.  Solomon wrote that after all of his study, examination, and struggle, there is but 2 things we should know about how we fit into God’s will.

(1) Obey God

(2) Keep His commandments.

Yep… that’s it.  If course, the next question I had was… how do you obey God?  Well Christ came to walk among us and told us that we should be obedient to the two greatest commands… Loving God with every fiber of your being, and love your neighbor as yourself.

So if you’ve ever wondered why this faith thing is so complicated and uninteresting… it’s because you’ve been filled with false hopes, encumbering teachings, and some form fouled up religion.

Solomon figured this out some time ago… wrote it down… and it’s there for you to draw upon.  Christ came along and confirmed this pursuit, and we somehow foul it all up by making it hard on ourselves.  Go spend an evening reading Ecclesiastes.  Stop struggling with the idea of faith… it’s been solved.  Someone smarter than you has figured it out… learn from him.

May you find peace in the simplicity of God’s enormity.  May you not struggle today and know that loving your neighbors to the point where it costs you something is loving God… and doing so is keeping his commands.

Peace,
Greg
Acts 4:31

About

Welcome, and thanks for dragging yourself over to Live|Bold! My name is Greg Arnold and I am pumped to see you here. This interactive online community is here to point every man toward the cross. Whether you have been a follower of Christ for ages, or you are just stumbling into this strange new world of faith, we have something of value to offer you. This online e-zine is a cross between a blog, a social network, a resource center, and a pulpit. My hope is to inspire you to live your faith on the outside and be a real man for God. We need you in the fight.