Today I read Ecclesiastes 1, about the vanity of human wisdom because we continue to lose the same information and increases in knowledge bring can disappointment. Today I considered that as children we come into the word innocent with joy, gaining wisdom can change that causing us to feel burdened, but God’s Word can also lighten our burdens.
Disappointed Wisdom Seeker
A person being a student of wisdom gains both the good and bad that comes with wisdom (Ecclesiastes 1:1-18). Nothing is new. There are repeating patterns in life that we do not remember in the next generation but continue. People work, are never satisfied, and die, then the next generation does the same. The sun continues the pattern of rising; the wind continues to flow one way then another; the rivers continue to flow into the sea; and crooked cannot be made straight. The more you know the more grief and sorrow you also have.
Questions and Thoughts for Today
The wisdom seeker gained knowledge but lost joy. This makes me think of how children are different from adults. Louise Causon said, “Children’s innocence is characterized by an unfiltered view of the world, an ability to find joy in the simplest things, and a natural trust in the goodness around them.” There is a joy and happiness many people have because they do not know about things going on around them. When a person knows more, they also learn about others’ lack, grief and sorrow. In Ecclesiastes 1, we see that as me learn more it can also increase our burden. But we can remember that Jesus Christ wants to make our yoke easier and our burden light.
What did you learn about life or the world that increased your burden? How has seeking Jesus Christ and reading God’s Word in the Bible helped lighten or ease that burden?