Dearly Beloved, WHAT DOES A MAN GET FOR ALL THESE? “So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me…. What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun?” (Ecclesiastes 2:17-22, NIV). I was already sleeping that night when a pastor-colleague phoned me to inform me about a tragedy that has just happened – a graduate (with first-class honors) of the private university owned by my denomination died in an auto accident three days after his graduation on his way to resume work in his new place of work. I could not believe the story until it was confirmed the following day during the morning devotion of the headquarters of my denomination where I work. What a great loss to his family, especially his mother that had nurtured him to this level! (He had no father.) What a great loss to the university that did its first graduation ceremony just some days ago! What a great loss to my denomination that is one of the leading religious institutions that are contributing to the moral and educational upbringing of our youth! What a great loss to the society at large for losing a young brilliant promising youth that would have been of great value to its people! As I was thinking about the wasted efforts to be educated of this young man, the words of the writer of the book of Ecclesiastes came to my mind: “What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun?” (Ecclesiastes 2:22, NIV). I was downcast. I was not happy. I thought about myself. Why am I struggling in life? Why am I striving to be more educated? Why do I want to become somebody in life? If I can die and leave all these things any day, why do I need to toil and work for someone to come and reap my toil (if it is possible)? Many questions came to my mind. Like the writer of the book of Ecclesiastes, I also hate life. However, I am consoled with the words of Paul the apostle: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21, NIV). Yes, I will do everything here on earth for Christ, and when I die, it will be a gain for me. That is the only way that man’s toil on earth cannot be a wasted effort. What and who are you living for on earth? Has your struggle to become somebody made you to forget your Creator, or made you not to put Him in His right place in your life? Do you realize that one day you also will leave all these things? Jesus Christ once said, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?” (Luke 9:25, NIV). What does a man or woman get for all these? In His service, Bayo Afolaranmi (Pastor). Prayer Requests: 1. Pray that the Holy Spirit, the great Comforter, will comfort the mother, siblings, other relatives, and colleagues of this young man. 2. Pray that you will live for God so that your toils on earth will not be in vain. _________________________________________________ FindLaw - Free Case Law, Jobs, Library, Community http://www.FindLaw.com Get your FREE @JUSTICE.COM email! http://mail.Justice.com