By: Don Hill
Read: Ecclesiastes 2: 1 - 11
Read: Luke a5: 11 - 24
Meeting friends and having a good time is considered the "picker upper." These fun times help us momentarily forget our problems. But when the party is over and we go home, we still have a great "void" deep within us. Our lives are not complete; something is still missing.
After education did not fill Solomon's void, he turned to other things he thought would bring him pleasure and happiness. He tried cheering himself and forgetting his problems through excessive drinking. He embraced "folly", or, as we would say in modern terms, he acted crazy .... he did foolish things. But after a season of living from one party to the next....he was still unhappy.
The Bible admonishes us not to be foolish and not to get drunk on wine. These things will not make us happy. Happiness will come as our lives are filled with the Spirit. The "Spirit" the writer of Ephesians is speaking about is the Holy Spirit....the Spirit of God sent from heaven to fill the world with His love and wisdom.
When Jesus left His disciples and was caught up in heaven to be with God the Father, He told them to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit. Thirty days later just as He had promised, those who waited were filled with God's power and love as the Holy Spirit came upon them. After the Holy Spirit came, the joy of these first Christians was so apparent.
The most satisfying and exhilarating experience in life comes to us when the Holy Spirit enters our lives and we receive the joy and happiness this Spirit of promise brings. Once we experience the "real" joy the Holy Spirit gives, nothing else will ever compare.
It is not God's will for people to walk around in the gloomies with frowns on their faces. His people are called to radiate joy and happiness. Indeed, His followers are blessed because Jesus Christ gives us everything we need to enjoy life to the fullest through His blessed Holy Spirit.
Read: Ecclesiastes 2: 1 - 11
Read: Luke a5: 11 - 24
Meeting friends and having a good time is considered the "picker upper." These fun times help us momentarily forget our problems. But when the party is over and we go home, we still have a great "void" deep within us. Our lives are not complete; something is still missing.
After education did not fill Solomon's void, he turned to other things he thought would bring him pleasure and happiness. He tried cheering himself and forgetting his problems through excessive drinking. He embraced "folly", or, as we would say in modern terms, he acted crazy .... he did foolish things. But after a season of living from one party to the next....he was still unhappy.
The Bible admonishes us not to be foolish and not to get drunk on wine. These things will not make us happy. Happiness will come as our lives are filled with the Spirit. The "Spirit" the writer of Ephesians is speaking about is the Holy Spirit....the Spirit of God sent from heaven to fill the world with His love and wisdom.
When Jesus left His disciples and was caught up in heaven to be with God the Father, He told them to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit. Thirty days later just as He had promised, those who waited were filled with God's power and love as the Holy Spirit came upon them. After the Holy Spirit came, the joy of these first Christians was so apparent.
The most satisfying and exhilarating experience in life comes to us when the Holy Spirit enters our lives and we receive the joy and happiness this Spirit of promise brings. Once we experience the "real" joy the Holy Spirit gives, nothing else will ever compare.
It is not God's will for people to walk around in the gloomies with frowns on their faces. His people are called to radiate joy and happiness. Indeed, His followers are blessed because Jesus Christ gives us everything we need to enjoy life to the fullest through His blessed Holy Spirit.
