Finding Meaning

   “Fear of the Lord gives purpose, meaning, satisfaction and life; without it, life has no point. No fear of the Lord = vain efforts to fill the soul's longing.”

"So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me; for all is vanity and a chasing after wind.." ~Ecc 2:17

    I hear the words of Solomon again and again- he is trying to get a message across. He lived his life, and though he had wisdom greater than anyone that ever was, or anyone that will be, he somehow still missed it. As he sits, old and feeble, penning the words of Ecclesiastes, I wonder if he writes with a desperate urgency. He sits and stares at the wall as he pauses between thoughts, “If only I could get back those lost days...If only I had gotten it at the beginning, instead of forgetting the most important thing in life and spending my time running after all the other things that were only meant to enrich a life lived out for one thing: the fear of the Lord.” I bet that as he wrote out the last words, his heart was stirred..."They need to get this.”

   After all of Solomon's days of running after everything in life to find meaning, he came to the end of his life with this conclusion: "The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of everyone."~Ecc 12:13 He found something that so many are still searching for: meaning. After everything, it all comes down to one thing at the end of the day. 

   Fearing the Lord is everything. They needed to get it, I need to get it, the church needs to get it, the world needs to get it. If fearing the Lord truly is the only way to real life, to filling this deep longing that every person has inside of them, if it is the way to see God's heart, hear His voice, be a part of what He is doing, and if He is everything, then Fear of the Lord has to become top priority. If fear of the Lord is so crucial to life, then I don't want to miss it.

   Every day the world forgets, the body of Christ gets distracted, I get caught up in my own stuff and forget. I forget that life is about something bigger than me, and that God is worthy of my life, because God is God. I forget that giving Him the top place in my heart and obeying Him and honoring Him is the only thing that brings life into perspective and gives it meaning. Why is it so easy to get caught up in the small things of life, see the supplements like wisdom, wealth, relationship, success, and forget that these are blessings on the side, but not the ultimate thing?

   It's only when God is first that life can have meaning. Valuing God above everything, standing in awe before Him, living a life that walks out getting to know and understand Him better, loving the things He loves, and hating the things He hates. Isn't this the Fear of the Lord? This is something that is easy to say, but hard to do.

   This challenges me. I want my life to be one that is lived out in the fear of the Lord. I want to walk through life like Ruth, who in an age when fearing the Lord wasn't popular, or comfortable, she still chose it. I want to walk out proverbs from day, to day, loving wisdom. And what is the beginning of wisdom, where does it all start? Fearing the lord. A life of loving wisdom, I think is a life of loving walking close to God's heart, loving obedience to Him. I want to walk out a life being fulfilled because God fills me. I want that wholeness and contentment, to attract people to loving God as well. Fear of the Lord brings life, walking with God brings satisfaction and wholeness....I want to live a life of wholeness in Christ, rooted in the Fear of the Lord so that others might want what they see in me, and come to Fear the Lord as well. Why? Because fearing the Lord is he only way to real life.

   If the body of Christ consisted of a group of people who really valued the Fear of the Lord, hating evil, and loving the things that God loves, I don't think that there would be so many people walking around broken, empty and tired because they have missed the point. If we, as God's children, could change our perspective and see how vital Fearing the Lord is, and if we lived lives of fearing the Lord, people would be attracted to the life that we have inside of us. If we could live out meaningful lives, finding our true satisfaction in God alone, and letting all the other things in life simply be seen as gifts that He gives us, but not satisfaction in and of themselves, things would begin to change.

   God, as your child, and as part of your body, I want to be someone who lives in the fear of you, and is able to have a meaningful life. I know that meaning comes only form you and who you are. Let us, as your church, remember you. Teach us what it looks like to walk in fear of you, even when it's difficult. We want the lost , broken and weary to be drawn to you. We want people to be able to rise up out of broken and hopeless lives of chasing after things that will never fill. Use us.Use me, here I am....