ARE YOU FRUSTRATED AND SEARCHING FOR PEACE AND HAPPINESS?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“I have seen all the things that are done under the sun;
all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.”
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the
matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this
is the duty of all mankind.”
(Ecclesiastes 1:14, 12:13)

MEDITATION:
There are times when life can be complicated, can’t it? If you
were the wisest, wealthiest, and most powerful person, would
life be any better for you? To answer this question, we should
read the book of Ecclesiastes in God’s Word. We will discover
that Solomon was exactly the person described above.

He was known as the wisest man ever, with enormous wealth and
power. As a wise man, when he evaluated life on earth, he found
it to be very frustrating. Solomon discovered that no matter how
much a person has, or what talents he or she possesses, mankind
will still continue searching for gratification.

Solomon saw the futility of seeking satisfaction in people and things.
Despite amassing wealth and knowledge, completing great projects,
and marrying many wives, he said,
    “All is meaningless and a chasing after the wind”

He found that wealth, wisdom and power cannot make life more
pleasing for mankind. Since he possessed all three, he is the one
most qualified to give us advice regarding the ‘pluses’ and the
‘minuses’ of having them.

Why can’t we find fulfillment when chasing the fleeting things
of life? The biblical answer is – we were created to find our
ultimate fulfillment in God. Jesus promised,
    “I have come that they may have life,
      and that they may have it to the full”
      (John 10:10)

People and things come and go, but the spiritual satisfaction
Christ offers will sustain us in this world, and it will endure
throughout all eternity.

So, what do we do? Do we just go through life trying to
‘push a rope up a hill’ in our efforts to find satisfaction?
Apparently, mankind will always have a yearning for
something visible over what is invisible.

How do we overcome this desire for the visible? How can
we find anything positive in the desires we have which are
contrary to what God wants of us? We need to pause and
realize that God wants us to ‘seek Him above all things’.

That says a lot about His love for us, doesn’t it? God wants a close
relationship with all who belong to Him. How exciting is that? The
omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (all knowing) and omnipresent
God of the universe wants us as His friends. Look at what Jesus said:
    I no longer call you servants, because a servant does
    not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called
    you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father
    I have made known to you.
    (John 15:15)

We may trudge through life wondering if this is all there is,
until we discover that ‘God is all there is’ for living a good life.
He is the most important influence in our life. He is the One
who can bring joy, peace and happiness into our lives.

What was the wisest man’s (Solomon) conclusion? He tells
us that our goal should be to,
    “Fear God and keep his commandments”
If we are not striving to obey His commandments, then we
will most likely continue a life of frustration as we continue
searching for something to satisfy our yearnings.

How did Jesus respond when Satan tried to tempt Him?
    Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship
    the Lord your God and serve him only.’”
    (Luke 4:8)
Jesus said that in addition to ‘worshipping’ God, we should
also ‘serve’ Him.

Jesus says to each of us,
    “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’
      and do not do what I say?”
      (Luke 6:46)

The Bible tells us in simple terms that we should
    ‘worship the Lord our God’, ‘serve Him’, and
    ‘do what He says’ (which shows our sincerity
     in calling Him Lord, Lord)
Serving Him and doing what He says, confirms that
we truly worship the Lord, and we consider Him as
the most important One in our life.

Sadly, there are some who call Him Lord, but have decided
they will not do what He says. They have selected the things
He tells us to do that best fit what they want to do and have
chosen to ignore His other commands.

For instance, He tells us to meet together in His house, but
we have heard some say things like:
    “Someone at church offended me, so I am not going back!”
    “I don’t enjoy the music they play, so I don’t go to church.”
    “The church is full of hypocrites, so there is no point in my
      attending.”
    “I have my reasons for not going.”

These excuses (and many others not included), may sound
reasonable to others, but are they acceptable to the Lord?
According to His own words, they are not! When we obey
His command and go to His house, it is to meet with Him,
and not to judge others, or critique the music selections.

Our primary reason for being there is to obey the Lord and
worship Him. If we want to serve Him then we must obey
Him. We cannot be a witness until we have worshipped.
Worship is what prepares us to be a witness, and it confirms
to others that we are sincere when we share our faith with them.

Others are not interested, and will not pay attention to us when
we share our faith with them, unless they can see some evidence
of the presence of Jesus in our own lives. If they cannot see the
characteristics of Jesus in our lives, then they will question the
sincerity of our faith.

ACTION:
Are you following the instructions from God to ‘worship
the Lord your God’, ‘serve Him’, and ‘do what He says’?
Do you have your own personal list of the only commands
you will obey, or have you given the Lord your heart and
surrendered to Him completely?

If others asked you,
    “How are you serving the Lord you claim to believe in?”
how would you respond? If we are not serving Him in some
capacity, then it’s understandable why others would question
the depth of our faith, right?

Do others observe you living out your faith by obeying ALL
of God’s commands? Do you want to continue a life of that
is frustrated and searching for happiness, or do you want
the Lord to bring joy and satisfaction into your life?

As believers, we will all be held
accountable when our life on earth has ended.
    For we must all appear before the judgment seat
    of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is
    due us for the things done while in the body,
   whether good or bad.
    (2 Corinthians 5:10)

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank you for giving me a yearning
to find You and to give You full control of my life. I know
the world cannot give me what You can provide. Forgive
me if I still have areas of selfishness in my life. Your Word
tells me that for me to call You Lord, I must do what You
say I should do. Others may not know if I have decided to
disobey some of Your commands, but You and I know when
that’s what I’ve done. Forgive me and encourage me to obey
all your commands so I can confidently call You Lord. I pray
for You to guide me in using the spiritual gifts You have given
me so I can find joy in serving You. I’m tired of struggling with
the challenges of life and I want to find a new purpose for living
that is pleasing to You and will be satisfying to me.”

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