Going Nowhere - Greg Laurie Devotion - June 2, 2023
Friday, June 2, 2023
Going Nowhere
Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content. (Ecclesiastes 1:8 NLT)
If you’ve ever ridden a stationary bike, then you know that no matter how much you pedal, you never go anywhere. And even if you’re riding a high-tech bike with a monitor displaying terrain that you’re supposedly going over, a quick look around reminds you that you’re on a machine. And you’re in the same place where you started.
That is what life can be like sometimes. You’re always trying, but it seems like you’re not going anywhere.
Solomon looked at life that way. He wrote, “What do people get for all their hard work under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth never changes. . . . Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content” (Ecclesiastes 1:3-4, 8 NLT).
That’s a bleak way to look at life. But throughout Ecclesiastes, Solomon uses a phrase that helps us explain his outlook: “under the sun.”
Solomon was speaking of horizontal, strictly human living. He rarely looked above the sun for answers. In other words, he was not looking to God. Instead, he was looking horizontally. He was looking to this planet, to this world, for answers.
As a result, Solomon decided to take a crash course on sin. He was prepared to try everything that was out there. He wanted the finest entertainment the world offered and the finest education that money could buy. And he wanted to experience unlimited materialism. Basically, Solomon wanted to experience everything there was to experience.
Solomon had what most people only dream of. But in the end, it turned out to be a nightmare.
This serves as a reminder that if we leave God out of the equation when we attempt to meet the deepest needs of our lives, we always will come up empty.
Copyright © 2023 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
For more relevant and biblical teaching from Pastor Greg Laurie, go to www.harvest.org
and
Listen to Greg Laurie's daily broadcast on OnePlace.com and weekly podcast on LifeAudio.com.
Watch Greg Laurie's weekly television broadcast on LightSource.com.
In thanks for your gift, you can receive a copy of The Jesus Discoveries by Jeremiah Johnston
Did Jesus really exist? Can we trust the Gospels? What does archaeology say about the resurrection? In The Jesus Discoveries, apologist and scholar Dr. Jeremiah Johnston unpacks 10 remarkable findings that support the New Testament and strengthen our understanding of who Jesus is. It’s accessible, engaging, and perfect for believers who want to be better equipped to answer tough questions with truth and compassion. Request your copy this month with your gift to Harvest Ministries.
