I like reading Ecclesiastes. It is not an exciting book of the Bible and it basically says that everything in the world is meaningless. However, that is something that I think about sometimes. Without God, most things would be meaningless. We could have all the fun in the world and enjoy our work, but why would it matter if there was no God?
I also like reading Esther. It is a great story about God and the way He helps his people. It is great to see that Esther, even though frightened, still goes into the king's ineer court. I also like what Mordecai says in Esther 4: 14, "Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?" Esther shows us how to trust God and how to help people even if it meant death.
In Genesis 1, we see God creating the world we know today. Genesis 1:1-16 is God creating the world through day four. He speaks each part of the world into exsistence. Genesis 37 is about Joseph. He goes out looking for his brother's who are with the sheep because his dad asked him to go. His brother's don't like Joseph because of dreams that he told eariler in the passage, but he still goes to look for them. I love the story Joseph and how he does great things even though his brothers just intedend to bring harm on him. It shows that God has plans through bad situations, like Joseph later tells his brothers. In Genesis 37:12-17 we just see Joseph out looking for his brothers.
I loved reading Esther too. I love seeing how God can use any of us to change the world. It was especially more meaningful after hear Rabbi Philip. He said that God was never directly mentioned in the book, but you could see him. I think that is the way that it is in all of our lives. We are given the opportunities to serve daily, we just have to be receptive to our calling and willing to go out and positively influence or world.
ReplyDeleteI found Ecclesiastes to be very enjoyable too. Even if we grasp the concept that everything in the world is meaningless without God, I think it is still easy to forget about constantly when we are on the same playing field with material possessions and striving for non-everlasting earthly success. The author did a great job of pointing out vain things that we don't usually think about. ex-"For who knows what is good for mortals while they live the few days of their vain life, which they pass like a shadow? For who can tell them what will be after them under the sun?" He reminds us that we should do the things that make us happy, just to be weary about whether or not they are going to have a lasting effect.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite verses is Ecclesiastes 3:11 which says, "He has made everything beautiful in its time." I find such hope in this verse because it tells me that there is something much greater at work than me! I may never see the fruits of my labor... I hope I do...but does that excuse me from sitting idlely by and doing nothing to make this world better than I found it?
ReplyDeleteDid you think differently about Ecc. after Rabbi Flip's discussion of the different translations? How does it make us feel differently to hear it translated as "all is ephemeral" rather than "all is vanity"?
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