Ecclesiastes 2:1-26 You may be wise. You may be a fool. But, without God, your similar end is despair.

Ecclesiastes 2
1I said in mine heart, Go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure: and, behold, this also is vanity. 2I said of laughter, It is mad: and of mirth, What doeth it?
3I sought in mine heart to give myself unto wine, yet acquainting mine heart with wisdom; and to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was that good for the sons of men, which they should do under the heaven all the days of their life. 4I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards: 5I made me gardens and orchards, and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits: 6I made me pools of water, to water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees: 7I got me servants and maidens, and had servants born in my house; also I had great possessions of great and small cattle above all that were in Jerusalem before me: 8I gathered me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces: I gat me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, as musical instruments, and that of all sorts.
9So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom remained with me. 10And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour. 11Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun. 12And I turned myself to behold wisdom, and madness, and folly: for what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done. 13Then I saw that wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness. 14The wise man's eyes are in his head; but the fool walketh in darkness: and I myself perceived also that one event happeneth to them all. 15Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity. 16For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool. 17Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit. 18Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me. 19And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have shewed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity. 20Therefore I went about to cause my heart to despair of all the labour which I took under the sun. 21For there is a man whose labour is in wisdom, and in knowledge, and in equity; yet to a man that hath not laboured therein shall he leave it for his portion. This also is vanity and a great evil. 22For what hath man of all his labour, and of the vexation of his heart, wherein he hath laboured under the sun? 23For all his days are sorrows, and his travail grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night. This is also vanity. 24There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God. 25For who can eat, or who else can hasten hereunto, more than I? 26For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit.

Why is it that there are so many suicides in the United States of America? The wealthiest country in the world. Why does home or business ownership not satisfy?

Here are some statistics:
U.S. Suicide Statistics (2001)
-Actual Suicides-
1.3% of all deaths are from suicide.
On average, one suicide occurs every 17 minutes.
On average, an elderly person dies by suicide every 1 hour and 37 minutes.
On average, a young person (age 15-24) dies by suicide every 2 hours and 12 minutes.
Suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death for all Americans.
Suicide is the third leading cause of death for young people aged 15-24 year olds.(1st = accidents, 2nd = homicide)
Suicide is the fifth leading cause of death for young people aged 5-14 year olds.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college students.
Suicide is the eighth leading cause of death for males.
Suicide is the nineteenth leading cause of death for females.
More males die from suicide than females.(4 male deaths by suicide for each female death by suicide.)
More people die from suicide than from homicide. (Suicide ranks as the 11th leading cause of death; Homicide ranks 13th.)
73% of all suicide deaths are white males.
80% of all firearm suicide deaths are white males.
Among the highest rates (when categorized by gender and race) are suicide deaths for white men over 85. (54 per 100,000)
http://www.suicide.org/suicide-statistics.html\

The category for the highest rates of suicide are white men over 85. People who have outlasted friends and family, who have no doubt worked, in one way or another, their whole lives are the most likely to commit suicide. Why is that?

Look at the young people statistics. Those cause my heart great grief, as do all the statistics of this issue. Especially kids and young adults with, as the world sees them, bright futures, i.e. college students, makes this passage very relevant for today.

These statistics show that amassing things like knowledge, wealth or longevity, in the end mean nothing compared to what really matters. This is totally backwards from what the world would have us believe.

Yes, Solomon points out wisely that enjoying your labor and the fruit of your hands is not wrong. No, it is from the hand of God, so enjoy.

Solomon says, "24There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God. 25For who can eat, or who else can hasten hereunto, more than I? 26For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God."

The young despair of life fearing the future, possibly sensing the futility of life without God. The aged despair of life looking back on a life spent without God, finding they have nothing at all in the end.

Solomon begins teaching us here that we must be good in God's sight, in order to truly enjoy life here and hereafter. Exodus 15:26 Says, "And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee."

But, how can we possibly be found in that position? Only in Christ. Philippians 3:8-10 Says, "8Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, 9And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: 10That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;"

We must seek Christ and his glory in order to truly live life to the fullest. Christ and the glory that awaits us will keep us from despair. May God be with our families. May God be with our children and keep them from the darkness of despair. May he light their paths.

Can you say Amen at the end of a testimony filled with lies?

This blog really goes in depth into the heart of why the Gospel is hindered by lies relating to a person's testimony. We must not mix truth with lies, especially the ultimate truth.

Please take a moment to consider.

Ecclesiastes 1:1-11 Can you have an iPod big enough?

Ecclesiastes 1
1The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. 2Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. 3What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun? 4One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever. 5The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose. 6The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits. 7All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again. 8All things are full of labour; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. 9The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. 10Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us. 11There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after.

I like the way Solomon sets up his argument in Ecclesiastes: "All is vanity."

A lot can be said here, but I want to address a certain aspect of the passage: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.

Do you have an iPod? How many songs do you have on it? How many podcasts have you downloaded? How many movies do you rent or how many have you downloaded?

I have over 40gb of info on my iPod, which is probably laughably small, and you know what? I am tired of listening to most of it. Songs that were great and fresh have become nauseating. Movies have become predictable and jokes have lost their sting. They have become empty.

Solomon has caught on to the fact that God has designed us to only be fulfilled in him and the fact that the curse not only wears down our bodies but also everything we try to find pleasure, rest or escape in. As Isaiah says: Isaiah 40:8The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.

Solomon knew that conclusion and describes what is not vain, after laying out his arguments and evidence in the rest of the book.

I am reminded of the truth of Genesis every time I put clothes on. May God remind us of our frailty and true purpose when our pleasures fade. May God help us to find satisfaction in him alone.

Harvest House says to Ergun Caner, "respond."

Great to hear that a company did not hide or try to deny the issue in an effort to save their publishing dollars.

This shows integrity, and I am glad. It shows that if the book says fiction, it's fiction, but if it says non-fiction, it had better be non-fiction!

I also agree with them: Set it straight soon Ergun, please?

Harvest House statement:
"We are saddened by the controversy that has risen as a result of the self-contradictory statements made by Ergun Caner over the years. And, we are concerned that the allegations surrounding his statements have not yet been adequately addressed by him, and we are hopeful that he will personally respond to them soon."