Toiling for the Wind

Tradition and Wisdom
Teaching and Learning:
Superiority of Wisdom

Ecclesiastes 5:10-20

The Message

 ¹⁰ The one who loves money is never satisfied with money,
   Nor the one who loves wealth with big profits. More smoke.

 ¹¹ The more loot you get, the more looters show up.
   And what fun is that—to be robbed in broad daylight?

 ¹² Hard and honest work earns a good night's sleep,
   Whether supper is beans or steak.
   But a rich man's belly gives him insomnia.

 ^13-17 Here's a piece of bad luck I've seen happen:
   A man hoards far more wealth than is good for him
   And then loses it all in a bad business deal.
   He fathered a child but hasn't a cent left to give him.
   He arrived naked from the womb of his mother;
   He'll leave in the same condition—with nothing.
   This is bad luck, for sure—naked he came, naked he went.
   So what was the point of working for a salary of smoke?
   All for a miserable life spent in the dark?

Make the Most of What God Gives

 ^18-20 After looking at the way things are on this earth, here's what I've decided is the best way to live: Take care of yourself, have a good time, and make the most of whatever job you have for as long as God gives you life. And that's about it. That's the human lot. Yes, we should make the most of what God gives, both the bounty and the capacity to enjoy it, accepting what's given and delighting in the work. It's God's gift! God deals out joy in the present, the now. It's useless to brood over how long we might live..

For Reflection
What could possibly be said that is more profound that verses 18-20?  :)

Pray
that you will relax.  Pray that you will take life as it comes.  Pray that you will take care of yourself.  Pray for joy and hope for laughter.  Pray that you will give to God the burden of labor and keep the delight of the work for yourself.