Ecclesiastes Challenge Week 2 Recap

Good morning (or afternoon, or evening...depending on when you're reading this)! Can you believe we are already more than halfway through this challenge? I'm not going to lie: it has been a challenge for sure thus far, and last week was just plain ol' had for me to dig deep and let the words sink into my heart. But God is faithful and I did find some good, juicy nuggets that stood out to me.

Overall, I was reminded last week to be content in what God has gifted me with here on this earth. What I have right now, whether I feel is a little or a lot, has been gifted and loaned to me by my Father. He  gives me just what He sees fit that I should have. Most importantly, I have Him. Nothing on this earth should give me more satisfaction that Himself, and nothing ever will. While money isn't bad, it can wver make me happy or be my true source of joy. I love how the commentary in my study bible says about gifts from God:

"Although they are not the source of joy, they are a reason to rejoice because every good thing comes from God. We should focus more on the Giver than the gift. We can be content with what we have when we realize that in God we have everything we need."

This even spills over to popularity, especially in this Instagram crazy world. Solomon reminds us in chapter 4 that striving to gain popularity or prestige is like chasing after the wind. Again, this will never truly satisfy us, and people are so fickle and will love you now but hate you later (and vise versa). We should seek and enjoy God's approval. His is the only one that matters at the end of the day anyway because He had final say. 

Both of these thoughts really challenged me to look at all areas of my life and to check my motives. Do I really do this to gain popularity? Am I trying to find my sense of happiness in this? Am I grateful for the gifts God has granted me? Maybe you could ask yourselves this question and see what answers you get.

Thanks for sticking with me through this challenge and please feel free to what God laid on your heart last week while studying the end of chapter 3 through the end of chapter 5!