Here is what came to mind as I read Ecclesiastes 1:2-11. I should live my life trying to do the best I can to serve the Lord by loving and serving others. If I happen to do something good, I should never boast or take any credit for what I did because it was truly a grace given by God to bring glory to Him. I am on this earth for a very short time. When I am gone, I will soon be forgotten. There will be more born after me, they will die and they will be forgotten.
It sounds a little depressing to speak of life in this way but only if I were to put all my treasures into this life. My life on earth is to prepare me to know, love and serve God, to know how much He loves me and to understand that He wants me to choose to spend eternity with Him according to His plan and not mine. God knows what is best for me and I have to trust Him. That is why “all things are vanity.”
When I read a scripture passage like Philippians 2:3-4 which tells me that the needs of others are more important than my own, I have a choice to either place others needs before my own if I want to follow Jesus and prepare for heaven, or ignore it and do everything for me. I have spent the majority of my life thinking of me. I am now doing the best I can to think of others first. I know that I fail miserably too often. The best part is that in knowing God and my relationship with Him, He has revealed His love and mercy to me, a very sinful man.
I think there is too much “crap” in this world and my desires for that “crap” have caused me to make some bad choices. The right choice would be to desire only want what I need to do God’s will. I do not need vanity.
Seeking To Reflect Jesus 