Making Sense of Life

Life is beautiful . . . but life can also become confusing and even quite complex and frightening. Borrowing an expression from sports-car advertising, life can go from “wonderful” to “confusing” . . . in under 10 seconds!

My Sunday school class, along with many other Southern Baptists Churches using the Lifeway Sunday school study material, has been in a summer series entitled, “Making Sense of Life.” The study has focused on the books of: Job and Ecclesiastes.  The study has been really good.

Before the study, when I heard something about Job, I would often recall the old expression, “the patience of Job.”  That was how I generally associated Job’s experience to life . . . and in life.  I simply viewed him as a really good guy from history who had a bunch of really bad stuff happen to him, but he just remained patient through the process; and because of his patience, everything finally worked out okay for him.  I suspect most other folks have looked at it like that.

When I heard something about Ecclesiastes, I would recall the old expression, “There is a time to live and a time to die . . . a time to laugh and a time to cry . . . etc.”  I suspect most other folks have done the same thing.

Actually, both of these books are much deeper and far different than those quotations suggest.  In truth, Job was not really all that patient as he struggled to understand the subject of human suffering and wrestled over the age-old question about people “always” being rewarded for good behavior and punished for bad behavior.  Solomon, stated his purpose for writing Ecclesiastes (1:13), was that he was seeking to discover the highest good in life.  Both books are about life . . . and are wonderful, God-inspired, and available to help us make sense of life when it makes that drastic change from beautiful . . . to confusing, as it sometimes does.

Solomon reported that he had gone to great lengths to find meaning and purpose in life.  He said that he tried pleasure, wisdom, relationships, and wealth; and discovered that in themselves, these could not give ultimate fulfillment.  His conclusion about human life . . . after his in-depth study, was as follows:

“When all has been heard . . . the conclusion of the matter is: Fear God and keep His commandments. Because this is for all humanity.”   Ecclesiastes 12:13                                                    

NOTE:      When I read of a person’s study, I want to know something of his qualifications and what all the study consisted of.  There have been very few people (if any) in history who ever had the time, knowledge, and resources to conduct such an in-depth study on the subject of meaning and purpose as did Solomon.  Consider Solomon’s qualifications as the researcher on this study: 1. God himself said that He had gifted Solomon to be the wisest person who ever lived; 2.  He was also amongst the wealthiest to have ever lived (it took 15 verses in the bible to describe his wealth); 3. As the most prosperous King of his era, he had unlimited exposure to anything . . . and everything . . . in any measure . . . which a human might call pleasure; and 4. In regard to experience with relationships . . . who in history could compare to this man who had 300 wives and 700 live-in girlfriends? He likely put the “relationship experience bar” . . . up to a level that will never be matched again.

Job discovered that the answer to his problem . . . was faith in God!

The study of Job, of course, included the on-going debate Job had with his friends.  Those friends held a harsh doctrine of exact retribution and were convinced that Job had done something bad and was getting what he deserved.  Job argued that was not the case at all.  As Job endured his “friends” efforts to help him, he made great leaps in his faith.  The friends’ arguments and accusations served as a catalyst for Job’s spiritual development.  Finally, Job discovered that the answer to his problem was: he didn’t have sufficient faith in God!

Solomon concluded that human life is weak and transient and God’s sovereign actions are beyond human ability to change; therefore, one should leave control of one’s destiny to God . . . and just enjoy His blessings.  We certainly saw the truth of that play out in Job’s story.

One of the wonderful new tools technology has made available to us in recent years is the G P S . . . Global Positioning System.  I like that thing . . . well, most of the time.  Over the summer, Sandy and I have had to make numerous trips into some the busiest areas of San Antonio, oftentimes during rush-hour traffic.  As we would leave home, I would enter the address in the GPS and set the route.  It is an amazing tool, but in spite of knowing that, there are times when I would feel the route was unfamiliar . . . and even uncomfortable . . . and unknown.  There were several times when I was tempted to turn off the GPS . . . and just go my own way.  But I had the good sense to stick with it (and when I didn’t, Sandy did and told me to knock it off) and each time I discovered that it had once again . . . brought me by the very best route.  The technology in the GPS saw a bunch of stuff that I could not see; it knew stuff that I could not know.

As I thought about Solomon’s conclusions, I began to think about the real G P S . . . the G P S that is far and away beyond any human technology . . . God’s Positioning System!  It may, indeed, take us on a route that may well prove to be uncomfortable . . . unfamiliar . . . and unknown.  The Bible records the stories of many who have gone before us and shines its light on how uncomfortable many of their journeys became (Daniel in the lion’s den; Abraham, the friend of God with a knife in his hand and his son Isaac laying on a sacrifice altar; Moses with his back to the Red Sea, a formidable Egyptian army bearing down upon him, and two-million crybabies whining all around him, just to name a few).

But the promise and testimony of Scripture is that God’s positioning of those before . . . and us at this moment in time . . . is that there are certain assurances.  Here are a few such assurances: 1. We are never alone; 2. His positioning us is all part of His master plan; 3. all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purposes (Romans 8:28); and 4. Trouble and struggles may come in life . . . but “surely goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our life.”

After this study, my conclusion is: My present situation (whatever it may be at any particular moment in life) . . . is simply that . . . it is only a situation . . . it is not my destination.  It is comforting to remember that God is in control . . . and that He has His big, strong hand on me . . . and He is ordering my steps, is directing my stumble, and is controlling my fall.

From looking at the champions of the Scriptures and their records, we can know that God is not going to direct us around the stress of life, that He may not calm the storm, but that He will develop us through the process.  He is far more interested in where we are going . . . than in where we have been.  He is also more concerned about what happens in us . . . than He is about what He can do for us.

Knowing this truth offers the opportunity to live without fear or apprehension.  Perhaps that was part of what Jesus meant when He said, “. . . and the truth shall set you free.”

If we can get it all in the right context, it really does make a great deal of sense.  Heaven is a prepared place . . . for a prepared people!  The truth is we wouldn’t have a clue how to prepare for Heaven; therefore, it is really good that God takes the time to prepare us and get us ready.  This perspective certainly helps make sense of life’s mountains and valleys, struggles, tensions, and turmoil . . . in the midst of all the blessings. 

 

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