WHY END THE YEAR WITH ECCLESIASTES?

As we close the chapter on yet another year, we find ourselves led to reflect on the kind of life we’ve been living and the direction we are headed. It’s important to do this from time to time because frankly it’s easy not to. It’s easy to be so consumed with work and the frantic pace of life that the only opportunities for reflection are traded in for mind-numbing entertainment, recreation, or other distractions. 

When was the last time you sat in silence and thought about your life and the choices you’ve made? When was the last time you considered what you have accomplished and what you plan to accomplish and whether any of it matters once you are gone? When was the last time you honestly asked if you’ve lost the plot? 

Does that sound scary? It should, because it is. Yet the author of Ecclesiastes seemed to reflect on such questions with brutal honesty. Sometimes the answers are unsettling…but the questioning necessary. 

This week we’ll be focusing on the conclusion of Ecclesiastes, chapter 12. However we’ll be looking at it through the context of the entire book. As the author examines and critiques his own life, we are given the opportunity to do the same with ours.