Devotional Life
Miserable Business
Life is to be full
Not with miserable business but enjoyment and fulfillment
What you have to do today matters to God
He wants you to find fulfillment in it
Look at these verses in Ecclesiastes
A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? Ecclesiastes 2:24-26
I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil — this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him. Ecclesiastes 3:11-14
Spending time with God keeps us focused on what really satisfies
Miserable Business
What is your business?
I have multiple businesses.
I don’t have a 401k or any retirement.
If I stopped working, I would
have to live on Social Security.
I have thought at times what if I had wealth
I could draw on the rest of my life?
What would be my business?
What would I do with my time?
In Ecclesiastes 4, we
find a story of a man.
A man who seemingly is over the hill,
on the second half of his life.
The man is alone…
Meaning he does not have the responsibility
of caring for other family members.
He looks at his wealth and is not content.
He is not saying he does not have
enough wealth and wants to get more.
He is asking himself the question…
"For whom am I toiling?"
Then he asks the question
I think we all have asked…
"And why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?"
The man sums up his life as…
A miserable business.
Whether you have to work all
your life or you have enough wealth
so you never have to work again…
Are you depriving yourself of enjoyment?
If so you have a miserable business.
I have found my devotional time has
been such a help with my business of life.
Rich or poor, life will have trouble and struggles.
Those struggles can rob us of our joy and
cause us to see the business of life as miserable.
I may use this verse a lot, but it has
helped me to keep things in perspective…
John 10:10
I have come that they may have life,
and have it to the full.
Life is to be full, not empty.
Full does not mean full
of money and possessions.
Full means rewarding, life
with purpose and meaning.
That is what the man in
Ecclesiastes was missing.
Our devotional time helps us
put our business in perspective.
If you have to work…
Your devotional time will help you see how
to do your business in a way that is
far more rewarding then the money you make.
If you do not have to work…
Your devotional time will help
you see how to use your time in
ways that will bring you enjoyment.
Life is to be full.
Not with miserable business
but enjoyment and fulfillment.
What you have to do today matters to God.
He wants you to find fulfillment in it.
Look at these verses in Ecclesiastes…
A man can do nothing better than to eat and
drink and find satisfaction in his work.
This too, I see, is from the hand of God,
for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?
Ecclesiastes 2:24-26
I know that there is nothing better for men
than to be happy and do good while they live.
That everyone may eat and drink,
and find satisfaction in all his toil
— this is the gift of God.
I know that everything God does will endure forever;
nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it.
God does it so that men will revere him.
Ecclesiastes 3:11-14
Spending time with God keeps us
focused on what really satisfies.
So don’t deprive yourself of enjoyment.
Ask the Lord, who wants
you to have a fulfilling life,…
“What am I toiling for?”
Our devotional time helps us see the steps of life.
The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD:
and he delighteth in his way.
Psalms 37:23 KJV
For we are God's workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus to do good works ,
which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Ephesians 2:10
The man in Ecclesiastes 4 was all alone.
You are not alone in life when you
make devotional time with the Lord.
Scripture Reading
Ecclesiastes 4:8 NIV
8 There was a man all alone;
he had neither son nor brother.
There was no end to his toil,
yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.
"For whom am I toiling," he asked,
"and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?"
This too is meaningless —
a miserable business !
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