I’m not going to lie, I can read thousands of inspirational quotes about living life to the fullest, I can read one book after another about what habits I need to build to fulfill my dreams, I can go to church three times a week and hear one message after another about the purpose of my life… and yet when I wake up in the morning and go through the same daily, weekly, monthly routine life doesn’t seem so vibrant with purpose, so permeated with potential, and so immersed with meaning.
From going to work, to attending and leading Bible studies, to preparing and teaching lessons in church, to hanging out with family and friends, to exploring new places, and to writing.
Every day, every week, every month, it’s all the same.
Maybe the people change, the situations change, the locations change… but the routine remains the same.
And in the cycle of working, playing, and serving eventually there comes a point when I start wondering, what’s the point of it all?
What am I living for anyway?
Is there a meaning to the same things that I do every single day?
If you’ve ever felt the same don’t worry, you’re not the only one.
There’s a man in the Bible who had it all and he felt the same.
He had all of the riches that the world had to offer.
He could indulge in whatever pleasure he desired any minute of the day.
He was esteemed, admired, and respected by everyone around him.
He built magnificent buildings and owned too many possessions to count.
And yet at the end of his life after he observed everything he had seen, everything he owned, everything he had done he came to only one conclusion.
A conclusion that astounded me at first and made me question how I live my life.
Here is what he says:
“I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.” (Ecclesiastes 1:24)
That’s the conclusion that the wisest man on earth came to at the end of his days: everything we do is meaningless.
Pleasure is meaningless (Ecclesiastes 2:1-11)
Work is meaningless. (Ecclesiastes 2:17-24)
Riches are meaningless (Ecclesiastes 5: 8-15)
Everything that people strive to attain in this world… meaningless.
Kiss the American dream good-bye because according to Solomon none of it really matters in the end.
And he’s not speaking hypothetically, he’s speaking from personal experience.
If you’ve ever questioned the meaning of your life, have felt empty on the inside, or felt like you are living on a constant treadmill then you and Solomon have something in common.
You live through the same old routine and always come up empty because just like him you’ve been searching for purpose in all the wrong places.
If you re-read Ecclesiastes 1:24 there are three key words that I want you to look at that will make his conclusion make sense – “Everything is meaningless under the sun.”
If life is a meaningless routine that you have to endure every day, if you go to sleep feeling empty from all that you did, if you have no purpose behind your actions it’s because you have forgotten (as I often have) that life is meaningless if we live for what matters under the sun.
Because purpose, meaning, and satisfaction in our daily routine only comes when we live for what is above the sun: God and eternity.
You, like Solomon, can possess all the pleasures, all the riches, and all the goods that this world has to offer but you will always come up short because what matters is not what you possess visibly, but what you possess invisibly with God and not what you hold in your hands but who you have in your heart.
God created a void in your heart that is only His to fill.
And when life becomes meaningless, boring, and hard it’s because we’ve been filling it with anything but Him.
We’ve started looking for meaning in the world when it can only be found in Him.
We chase dreams, riches, and popularity only to realize that even when we reach our goals and fulfill our dreams we still end up empty, just like Solomon.
In this world we can have it all but if we don’t have Jesus we really have nothing at all.
Today… if you’re struggling with the same old routine pray that God will re-ignite the desire in your heart to stop chasing the wind and start chasing Him.
To find meaning and purpose in your daily tasks in a way that brings glory to Him.
Once your heart is consumed with Christ you will step off the never-ending treadmill and face life with a new attitude because you will see…
That your relationships matter because it’s more than hanging out and passing time with people: it’s an opportunity to carry someone’s burden, to support, to encourage, to love, and to build up.
That your work matters because it’s more than just getting a paycheck: it’s your mission field to spread God’s love and light in the midst of your daily routine.
That your hobbies matter because it’s more than you having fun: it’s you enjoying God’s creation and using your passion, your talents, and your abilities to not only find joy in but bless others with.
That how you serve others in or outside of church matters because it’s more than you fulfilling your Christian duties: it’s you giving yourself away for a cause, a mission, a person so much greater than yourself.
If your life has been feeling empty lately step off the treadmill of routine and fill your life with Christ.
With Him you won’t come up empty or meaningless one more day.
Be blessed and live life wholeheartedly with God! –Anna… ♥
“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.” -Ecclesiastes 9:10
This is so good!
Thank you Andy!
Great post!
Thanks Kelvin.
Reblogged this on Saleama A. Ruvalcaba and commented:
Amazing post that speaks to the heart.
Amen!
Nice blog. I try to live my life to the fullest because my focus is on God and what He wants for my life and the people surrounding me.
Thank you Donya. That’s great! You are living for all the right things in this world. 🙂 Be blessed!
Reblogged this on Business Development & Conflict Resolution and commented:
Your life can have meaning with God.
Reblogged this on be fearless and commented:
Thank you,Anna!
Hi Anna! I believe the Spirit is doing something and pointing to something going on in His people at large (especially in the first world countries). I just finished writing a blog post that I’ll be publishing tomorrow in anticipation of Pentecost Sunday coming up this Sunday about coming to God emptied of this world and being filled with the Spirit. Thank you for the confirmation! Blessings to you 🙂
That’s so awesome Liv! I definitely think it’s something the Spirit is stirring up in people’s hearts because I’ve talked to many people who have also felt the burden to stop living for what the world has to offer and live wholeheartedly for God. I can’t wait to read your post today! Be blessed! ♥
Anna ~ love this! And love that you live ALL IN! 🙂
Thanks Heather. As are you 🙂 Be blessed always!
Reblogged this on Wise Maiden and commented:
Everything is meaningless… but there has to be a place to find a least some meaning, right? Absolutely. There is one place where all the meaning you’ll ever need is found. Find out what it is in this wonderfully articulated post by Anna Bachinksy. I highly recommend it!
Love this, especially “Because purpose, meaning, and satisfaction in our daily routine only comes when we live for what is above the sun: God and eternity.” So true. We chase things that are insignificant and ignore the significant!
Thanks Pat! We do (sadly)… but with Christ’s help we can live in light of eternity for the things that will matter at the end!
Excellent!
Lovely, Spirit-filled post Anna!! Hugs!!!! God bless you.
Thanks! Hope you have a fabulous week! Be blessed! ♥
You also!
God’s children working in the Lord’s vineyard are fulfilled knowing that their labour is not in vain in the Lord. 😉 God blessed your heart Anna! Thanks! <3 #encouraged
ღ Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. ~ 1 Corinthians 15:58
Amen to that! Nothing we do is in vain when we do it for God! 🙂 Hope you have a lovely week Mae! ♥
Lately I have been feeling like Solomon — without all the earthly riches! 🙂 — and have been starting each day with the purpose of living for what is above the sun. Thanks for your lovely post!!!
Ah yes… I’m sure we’ve all felt like Solomon at times (minus all the fancy stuff) 😉 I’m glad you’ve been starting your day focused on what really matters! May you continue to put Christ in the center of your life. Be blessed!
Yes Anna! I definitely feel like Solomon it’s part of why I haven’t been posting much lately, I just feel like I am still looking for direction and I just need to seek God and listen. Thanks for this post!
When you need direction that’s the best thing you can do! May He give you the clarity that you need about the steps you need to take next in your future with Him. Have a blessed week Kayla! ♥
Thank you for this reminder! This is a cycle I experience often. I know there is a greater value to my life than the daily grind, yet how often I need the encouragement and the prodding to look up, to look beyond the routine and rut, to remember that my purpose is rooted in God’s love and redemption. Beautiful! ~ Sheila
Hi Sheila! I think the cycle is quite common for us all, which is why we all need to be reminded of what really matters and how to make a difference in that daily routine without losing the feeling of purpose in all of it. As long as we put Christ in the center of it instead of all those other things that try to distract us and get us off course we will always be living for what matters!
Reblogged this on Only the Beginning and commented:
Speaks so much power & truth! If you have the time, which I’m sure you do, read it!
Hey, I love your blog truly.and it would be a great honour to me if you could check out my post. :). http://haripriyavaiesec.wordpress.com/2014/07/23/cupcakes-and-vodka/
Hi am daniel from india, sory i dnt have much knwledge in english sory for that, ill try lot to belive god but i cant able to do kindly help me for this,mail id for me mdanielaro@gmail.com
Hi Daniel, if you have any specific questions you want to ask about God or Christianity feel free to email me. My email is located on the bottom of my About Me page. Be blessed!
Thank you for this awesome post. This is my life. It has always been my life. I’ve had a few life-changing experiences where God revealed himself & changed me completely but most of my life has been a desolate wilderness with me wondering where God went. Most of the time I have been so lost.
You wrote, “If you’ve ever felt the same don’t worry, you’re not the only one.” It reminds me of one of my favorite songs by Evanescence “The Only One.”
I found this post by Goggling “life is meaningless.” It also led me to an article about Woody Allen’s belief that life really has no meaning. I don’t have the answer but our only hope is for Jesus to come and rescue us from the evil and bring true justice to the earth. That is the only truth.
God bless you for being honest and allowing God to show us again that we are not the only Christians to feel this way.
“I don’t have the answer but our only hope is for Jesus to come and rescue us from the evil and bring true justice to the earth. That is the only truth.” Those are some powerful and truthful words. We will never fully understand why and how things happen in this world but I believe that as long as we put Christ in the center of our life He will help us live in a way that brings Him glory and gives our life meaning. Thanks for sharing your thoughts Andrew. Have a blessed day!
Dear Anna
God will surely bless you abundantly…
Btw, I will like to share a more non-God based distraction.
http://milkthepigeon.com/2012/03/06/what-to-do-when-your-life-feels-meaningless/
Thanks Elijah, I’ll make sure to check it out. Be blessed!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and God’s words through this blog post. All the words in here, I could say, are what I’m going through now. I have never lost my faith but I became overwhelmed with all my responsibilities as a wife, a mother, and all that I want to possess for my family’s future and now I felt that I am too distant because with all those, frustrations and failures also came. So yes, I know and it has been made clear that I have this void in me that is longing for our one and only God. I am hoping for me to be constantly aware and to continue to reach out to Him and fill that void. Again, thank you.
Thanks a ton Anna for your awesome post. I read and thought she is soooo right how could everything in my life seem as if I have or should have it all together but I wake and feel empty some days. However after taking the time to sit in silence and thank God for it all I leave prayer time full and ready to chase the things he want for me.
That’s great Taneisha! Spending time with God always motivates us to live with passion and purpose as we pursue the things that have eternal significance and make a difference to the lives of those around us in this world. God bless you sister!
I literally don’t know what it means to “fill your life with Him”. I still feel that even though I am a Christian, my life has no meaning. I am constantly depressed. I have no dreams, no passions and barely any desires because philosophically my ultimate “why” is nonexistent. Sure God made me, but he does not say what i am supposed to do. I cannot create an identity that is worth while. My desires are seemingly void of ultimate purpose. I can no longer fake this and just say “it is what it is” and sweep it all under a rug and wait for happiness and real purpose to come to me. I think about how God does not need me for anything because I am simply human, and I am burdened with lack of true purpose in his kingdom. I feel alienated and robbed of joy because I am unable to build my own life around a solid sense of purpose and confidence. Im doing the daily grind but im dead on the inside and no Christian articles or insights have helped me. They all say the same things: pray, fill yourself with God (whatever that means), and things like “this is your lot in life, just choose to enjoy it”.
It is very hard to simply choose when no real purpose is presented. These things i think of constantly and i am scared to share this with anyone because it pushes them away and as a result i feel even more hopeless, Isolated, and ready to end my life. I have no idea how anyone can simply live working in seemingly meaningless jobs, pursuing passions with no real objective purpose other than simply just to do them, and then birthing children to repeat the process themselves. I feel no better off than an atheist. Sorry for the negativity but im just being real and I’m trying to get to the bottom of this and I am tired of fighting this fight with no end. Nothing makes sense to me anymore.
Hi Sean,
I know, to very painful degree, what you feel. Every word resonates with me. I understand you, Sean. I don’t know what you specifically went through, but it’s not easy to cheerfully and sincerely say that we can lead purposeful Christian lives when a bible study leader you trusted lies to you and received money under the table. When a Christian friend turns away at your time of need. Or when your own sin and nature render you unable to give or serve. It’s so easy to feel like you can’t run this race having seen and experienced so much disillusionment.
But if I can ask for you to do one thing, it’s to simply believe and don’t take your life. Let’s limp to heaven together. Just hold on, Sean, and just believe that Jesus died for you (JOHN 6:29 KJV). That’s sometimes the only work we can muster to do, and that’s ok!. As long as we finish this race, no matter how low we came or even if we come in last place, the Lord’s grace and love will admit us into his kingdom.