The scripture for today, July 29 (7/29), is Ecclesiastes 7:29 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:
“This only have I found: God made mankind upright, but men have gone in search of many schemes.”
We begin our lives upright ~ sinless. But as we grow out of innocent childhood, we begin to want recognition, power, money, beauty. And we tend to scheme to get them.
True, God does not want to deprive us if we can obtain these things. But Solomon (who wrote this), with all his worldwide fame, power, wealth, and beauty, still felt empty. Actually, we can even read the Bible and go to worship and still feel empty. Why? Because we need to think of someone else besides ourselves. We need to add good works to our faith (James 2) ~ helping others with the same enthusiasm we pursue our own recognition, power, money, and beauty.
Sometimes to fill our emptiness, we need to just return to our early childhood when we saw life through innocent eyes. Through simple eyes. Through eyes that believe so easily in God, and so easily love everyone.
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#recognition, #power, #money, #beauty, #fame, #wealth, #selfishness, #others, #infancy, #childhood
“Naked a man comes from his mother’s womb, and as he comes, so he departs. He takes nothing from his labor that he can carry in his hand.”
“To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and happiness, but to the sinner, he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.”
“Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind, nothing was gained under the sun.”
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of
“This only have I found: God made mankind upright, but men have gone in search of many schemes.”
“To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.”