"All things are vanity!" (Eccl 1:2) Our work is wasted (Eccl 1:3). We live so we can die (see Eccl 1:4). The sun, the wind, the rivers, and all creation are trapped in a cyclical pattern (see Eccl 1:5-7). We are literally and futilely "going around in circles." Even talking about our problem is a problem (Eccl 1:8).
The more we know and experience, the more dissatisfied and empty we become (Eccl 1:8). We think we can change the future, but the future will be merely re-runs of the past (see Eccl 1:9-10). Death overshadows life so much as to make life an exercise in self-deception and futility. We are tempted to view novelties and anomalies as newness, freedom, and hope. However, these signs of hope, on closer inspection, become signs of doom.
Jesus became a human being and entered our vicious cycle of vanity, illusion, and despair. Although He was crucified and murdered, He was not destroyed by this fallen world. Jesus rose from the dead. This was new – radically and totally new. Jesus broke the spell of deadly vanity. "This means that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old order has passed away; now all is new!" (2 Cor 5:17) Change anything and everything in your life so that you live in Jesus (see Gal 2:19-20).
| PRAYER: | Father, thank You for Your love in Jesus. |
| PROMISE: | "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart." –Ps 90:12 |
| PRAISE: | St. Vincent's primary virtue was charity. He combined his ministry among the very rich and fashionable with his absolute devotion to the oppressed and the poor. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College