“Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.” – Ecclesiastes 2:11 (NIV)
This is an expression captured from the Bible that depicts man’s efforts to find anything of value outside of God’s designed plan for that person’s life. I have been guilty of these many times in my life. How about you? In WHICH ways do you pursue WHAT?
I have spent hours on my phone searching for a bigger house, an affordable, comfortable pair of boots, the best deal on a car, hormonal therapy options, healthy recipes, and the best deals on groceries. After a recent foot injury my pursuit went to all sorts of exercises and different methods of training just to keep on moving forward. Then there is the surf on the internet to find the perfect pictures for the topic God gave me to share with you all.
Some of my chases are pure fascination, inspired by my daily life, but some became an obsession. It seems to me that everyone of us have an addiction of some sort. I have come to the understanding that the hand of our Maker has woven pursuit through each one of our souls in hopes that we might turn that hunger to Him.
This is what He says: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” (Mark 12:30)
We most certainly do love Him, but sometimes we love our perfect homes and bodies more, so we run to the gym with our next meal on our mind, to Home & Living for that Black Friday special, all the while telling ourselves that God doesn’t mind waiting — we’ll talk to Him later… Too often we don’t, because the phone in your hand rang while you were on one of these searches – your job called / the shop called / the washing called / the hunger pains called... and before you know it, the desire for Him is replaced with the things of this world. Does it sound familiar to you?
You and I were created to chase, but unless we are chasing the Lord, we’ll always be left feeling empty and void. What does your day look like as a chaser? Are you a destructive tornado - of F5 intensity on the scale - demolishing everything unanchored in the way? Have your enthusiasm become an obsession? Or worse, are you blown away by this blast?
“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:31-33)
All is temporary. Whatever you’re going after, good or bad, is temporary. Many of us are so consumed with the temporary that we forget about the eternal. The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life will pass away, and they are not from God. Whilst running, we still must watch where we’re going, or the fall will be a faceplant.
Live with a forever mindset. We are passing through time. We should understand that we are on an eternal journey, on our way to our final destination, and THAT is not chasing the wind.
Nothing in this world – no job, no pay check, no person, no event, no hobby is worthy of your devotion, except the worship of God, and God alone.
How can we have a forever mindset?
1. Pray for perspective - We are only pilgrims. This is not our permanent home.
2. See the invisible - We make sense out of life regarding the visibility of things, but what is visible to us, does not always help us to understand the invisible God. We must turn our eyes upon Jesus, who is the image of the invisible God.
3. Find ways to get close to Him and learn about His ways - Imagine crossing a stream of water. The ‘chase’ in you changes it into a white water rapid. Suddenly all the steppingstones look sketchy and unstable. You might drown. Slow down! Trust that God will show you the next move and guide you to the other side.
Pursuing worldly passions is like walking outside in the dark – a darkness where you can’t even see your feet as you’re walking. How do you keep yourself from tripping? You pull out your phone and instead of surfing the net, you use it as a flashlight. Jesus is the Light in our lives, showing us which steps to take when and where.
John 8:12 - “Once more Jesus addressed the crowd. He said, I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not be walking in the dark but will have the Light which is Life.”
Change the chase. Change what you are chasing. Rather follow than chase. Live with eternity in mind and remember Reckoning day. Search yourself instead of searching for ‘stuff’. In today’s terms: search yourself as if Someone is stalking you on Facebook: What if every post will be reviewed by God Himself? When God opens your Facebook profile, will it be speaking more about yourself than you would like to show? Right deeds, right motives won’t matter. This will be your report, no one else’s. Keep in mind that God is merciful, but He is also just.
Get peace in the middle of your storm. Work towards peace. Be your own Noble Peace winner.
May we be God-chasers today, tomorrow, and always, so that faith takes its rightful place of priority in each of our homes.
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