Ecclesiastes 3:14 (NIV) I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.

Most things in life have a life span. There are not a lot of things that last for a long time and there is absolutely nothing that will last forever...except God and the things of God. That’s why it is so mind-boggling that so many people ignore God who is eternal, and focus on things that will pass away. Most people live looking for temporal, immediate gratification and without thinking of all of the consequences that there are in living that way. That’s why there is so much pain and sorrow in this world and so many people that need to medicate themselves (drugs, alcohol, etc.) just to make it through each day. At the end of the day, the truth is that nothing can satisfy our souls. There is nothing you can buy, no relationship that you can have and no dream that you can realize that will satisfy you for very long. We are sojourners in this world trying to live as though we will be here forever. We will not be here that long and as we come to find out, nothing else endures forever either. Even heaven and earth will one day pass away (Matthew 24:25).

That’s why Solomon, in all his wisdom, wrote what he wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. If there was anyone that has lived on this earth that had the opportunity to do almost everything there is to do under the sun and someone who had the most riches of anyone ever, it was Solomon. But as you read the book of Ecclesiastes, you see that nothing that he accomplished, nothing that he acquired, nothing that he lustfully went after, including his seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines, brought any joy or satisfaction to his life. He turned out to be a miserable man who eventually turned away from the very God that had given him everything. He let go of the only thing and the only one who endures forever to do what wouldn’t last and what he described as “chasing after the wind."

A man named C.T Studd wrote a poem that includes the following words: “Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.” How true that is! Jesus is the only Eternal One and only the things that pertain to Him and to His Kingdom will endure forever. That’s why it is so important to get this now while we still have life in us. We need to stop looking elsewhere for our hope and our soul-satisfaction because it is not to be found anywhere else but in Jesus. The thing about that is that when you are involved with the things of God, your soul is completely satisfied and at rest, even in difficult times. Take the very wise advice that the Lord gives us through the life of Solomon even though Solomon wound up ignoring it himself. Surround yourself with things that will endure forever, which are loving and serving our Lord Jesus Christ and doing the work that He has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Those are not only the things that will endure forever, but that will also ensure that your life will be fruitful here and now and that will endure forever with Christ Jesus throughout all eternity!

Pastor Joey Vazquez