The Gift of Life

Defining Success in Life.
Ecclesiastes 2
“There is nothing better for man than to eat and drink and tell himself his labor is good. Also I have seen that it is from the hand of God.”
What defines a successful life? When do we know we have lived life in a way that matters, and that we can look back and affirm we have had a good life? These are the questions the Sage poses to us as he explores the purpose of life. He confronts us with many assumptions about what a successful life is.
He begins by examining a life of ease and enjoyment. It is essential to realize that the life he is describing in 2:1-11 is not the pursuit of unbridle hedonism. The term pleasure refers to the joy and happiness that God gives us. We often measure God’s blessing, not by the spiritual blessings of a transformed life, but by the physical blessings that come from a life without problems. This perspective Solomon places under the microscope, examining carefully whether the blessings of a life of enjoyment without any hardship are the essence of what it means to be blessed by God. This life, he describes, is one in which we can enjoy all the good things from God. They are the very things that we also give thanks to God when we experience them. However, the pursuit of meaning in life through pleasure is paradoxical, for even when we attain it, it still does not give us complete satisfaction. When we are going through troubles, we often ask God to remove them, for we equate freedom from trials with God's blessing. But Solomon points out that even with a life of ease, it does not guarantee complete joy and happiness. External circumstances do not translate into inward peace.
From pleasure, he turns to success in business. Solomon enjoyed the good life. He enjoys the blessings of his success. He had a palace of incredible beauty. He had wealth, so he had no worries about any economic downturn. His financial portfolio was secure. When we are struggling to make ends meet, we often think that if only we had a larger financial portfolio, we would be happy and content, with no worries. Solomon testified that he had it all, but even financial security and success were still empty of any lasting meaning. In the end, his success and economic prosperity still did not provide any permanent advantage. Like life itself, it also was the pursuit of that which had no lasting significance, for when one stands at the precipice of death, wealth also is meaningless.  
If success does not bring meaning, what about the quest for knowledge and wisdom? Here again, we are reminded that in a broken world, we all still face the same fate:  death. Sin has affected all humanity, and its consequence is felt by both the wise and the fold. This does not mean that wisdom has no value. He points out in verse 13 that wisdom does indeed help us navigate life. But we must also recognize that it still does not insulate us from the reality of death. The search for wisdom does not alter the destiny we all face: the reality of death. Solomon then confronts us with the question:  What is the point of life? This is the question that confronts us today. We strive for success and to gain knowledge and wisdom, yet we are still faced with the brevity of life. However, in doing so, he reminds us that life is a gift from God to be enjoyed despite its problems and paradoxes. We can get so caught up in the pursuit of success and meaning that we miss the most valuable gift of all: life itself. But the enjoyment of life can only be discovered in the context of our relationship with God. Genuine meaning in life comes when we recognize God’s sovereign movement in our lives, and we enjoy his gifts to us. The key to life is God himself. What then do we pursue? Are we pursuing meaning in success, wealth, or even knowledge, or are we pursuing meaning in our relationship with God and our surrender to him? So many times we get caught up in the pursuit of success in life that we forget the most important thing:  Life is a gift to be enjoyed in the present!