The king of empty pursuits - Greg Laurie - http://www.wnd.com/2014/07/the-king-of-empty-pursuits/
Pastor Greg Laurie draws lessons from happiness-seeker Solomon
In 1999 a documentary called "Trekkies" was released, featuring people who are obsessed with the TV series "Star Trek" and the movies based on it. Among them was a woman from Arkansas who had been selected as an alternate juror in the Whitewater trial. She made national news by showing up for trial each day wearing a Star Trek uniform. When the judge asked her about it, she replied with all seriousness, "If the president himself were on trial, I would still wear the uniform. I am an officer in the Federation universe 24 hours a day." She also said that she wanted to set a good example because she didn't want her officers to ever be ashamed to wear their uniforms.
What comes to mind is: What is wrong with these people? But is it any more bizarre when we think about the things that supposedly "normal" people dedicate their entire lives to? They will dedicate their lives to acquiring possessions. They will dedicate their lives to sexual conquest. They will dedicate their lives to getting the finest education available. But what they will find out is that if they forget about God in that pursuit, it will result in something called emptiness. Take it from an expert: Solomon.
Solomon went on a quest. He decided he would try everything this world had to offer. He wasn't content to simply read about it or take someone else's word for it. He was going to do it. He would go through it all personally. He was on a quest, on a search for truth.
Really, all of humanity is on a quest as well, searching for that something more in life. When God created us, he wired us this way. The Bible says that God has placed "eternity in [our] hearts" (Ecclesiastes 3:11), which simply means there is something in the heart of every man and woman that knows there is something more out there. Romans says that God made his creation subject to emptiness. It is almost as though we were born with a God-shaped blank inside of us. So the search begins.
It starts in the earliest part of our lives. For kids, it is the quest for the ultimate toy. If I just have this one toy, then I am going to be happy. ... The only thing that changes as we get older is the price tag of the things we pursue.
When we are single, we think, If I just had this relationship, then I'll be happy. Or, If I could just get married, then I will be happy. Meanwhile, married people are thinking, If I could just be single again, I know I would be happy. The single life is where it is - carefree and living life the way I want to live it.
Some may look back in their lives and come to the same conclusion Benjamin Disraeli did: "Youth is a blunder; manhood a struggle; old age a regret."
The inevitability of time marches on. The golden years arrive. And pretty soon, we have a lot more life behind us than we have in front of us. We have memories and regrets. And if that life has been lived without God, then it has been empty and meaningless. So the quest continues. As Solomon so wisely observed, a man "might live a thousand years twice over but still not find contentment. And since he must die like everyone else - well, what's the use?" (Ecclesiastes 6:6 NLT).
As I mentioned, Solomon went on a search. He recorded his quest - and his conclusions - in the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes. First, he pursued wisdom. He wrote, "I devoted myself to search for understanding and to explore by wisdom everything being done under heaven" (Ecclesiastes 1:13).
Certainly the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom is a good one. There are very few things in life that are greater than the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom, the pursuit of a good education. But if, in that pursuit, we leave God out, then it is going to indeed be an empty one. Solomon concluded, "I learned firsthand that pursuing all this is like chasing the wind. The greater my wisdom, the greater my grief. To increase knowledge only increases sorrow" (Ecclesiastes 1:17-18).
So much for that. So Solomon shifted gears: "I said to myself, 'Come on, let's try pleasure. Let's look for the "good things" in life'" (Ecclesiastes 2:1). He was essentially saying, "All right. Forget the pursuit of knowledge. I'm going to party. I'm going to have fun. I'm going to experience every pleasure this world offer has to offer."
Of course, the pursuit of pleasure is nothing new. When you boil it down, there is nothing new under the sun. Though our technology has changed and we've had many advancements since Solomon wrote those words, the basic cravings of people have not changed. The basic things people look to have not changed, either. The philosophy of eat, drink and be merry has been with us for a long time. There is some fun to be had out in this old world of ours. The Bible even acknowledges that sin is pleasurable for a season (see Hebrews 11:25). But in the end, there is emptiness. That is what Solomon found out. He concluded, "But I found that this, too, was meaningless" (Ecclesiastes 2:1).
Solomon wasn't done. Next he went on a building binge. He erected massive houses, mansions, and palaces. His portfolio of construction projects would have made Donald Trump's operations seem small in comparison. He did it all. But he found that it, too, was empty.
There is something in us that earth can never satisfy. The finest education won't do it. Drugs and alcohol won't do it. Sex won't do it. Relationships won't do it. Money won't do it. There is a deep longing inside of us, a sense that there is something more in this life. But it is not found in this world; it is found in a relationship with God.
We are living souls designed to know God and live above this mundane existence we call life. God can give us a pleasure that far surpasses the pleasures that this world offers. And the good news is there is no hangover in the morning. There is no guilt that accompanies it. The Bible says, "In your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:11 NKJV). There is pleasure in knowing God - not in chasing after happiness.
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