Go, eat your food joyfully and drink your wine happily, because God has already accepted what you do. — Ecclesiastes 9:7
The most important rule in studying the Bible is this: Whenever you read a passage, see what comes before and after it.
Right before the verse above, the “Teacher” (as the writer of Ecclesiastes is called) has been lamenting about how life is basically unjust. “This is the sad thing about all that happens under the sun: the same fate awaits everyone.” (Ecclesiastes 9:3) Then, after the above verse, he talks about how brittle and uncertain life is: “Accidents can happen to anyone. People most definitely don’t know when their time will come.” (Ecclesiastes 9:11-12)
So, this gives what comes between these passages more “oomph” (a theological term). Read Ecclesiastes 9:7-10 today. You’ll feel better, at least temporarily. No matter what is happening to you right now, notice the simple pleasures you can find. Drink your wine. Enjoy your friends. Look for how you may make a small difference somehow. Don’t worry that you make mistakes, because God “has already accepted what you do.” Ultimately, we’re all going to die, leaving behind successes, failures, and a lot in between. We’re all living “pointless lives” (verse 8), and that’s the point. We shouldn’t take ourselves so seriously and worry so obsessively. God has given us gifts for today to enjoy. We’re children running to the ice cream truck jingling down the road. Our Creator is behind the wheel.
So let’s look at the menu. I’ll take a waffle cone with two scoops of Rocky Road.
Sounds good to me. Thank you for such a happy message.
Great timing on the icecream truck! I’m planning our annual Neighborhood Night Out The ice cream truck brings everyone out of their houses
Kathy
Sounds very good to me. It must be a great burden for many thinking they don’t measure up.