At age 45, howard hughes was one of the most glamorous and richest men in america. He went out with actresses, piloted beautiful aircraft, and worked on top-secret CIA contracts. He owned hotels around the world and even had his own airline, TWA, to take him wherever he pleased.
20 years later, he was worth $2.3 billion dollars. But the world’s richest man back then had changed and began to live a pathetic life. He lived in small, dark rooms atop his hotels, without sun and without joy. He was unkempt: a scraggly beard had grown waist-length, his hair fell well down on his back and his fingernails were two inches long. His once powerful 6’4" frame had shrunk to about 100 pounds.
This famous man spent most of his time watching movies over and over, with the same movie showing as many as 150 times. He lay naked in bed, deathly afraid of germs. Life held no meaning for him. Finally, emaciated and hooked on drugs, he died at age 67, for lack of medical device his own company had helped to develop. (The Student Bible, New International Version, Copyright 1986, 1992, 1996 Zondervan Corporation, Michigan, USA)
Howard hughes may be an extreme example of what it means to live a meaningless life, but he is not alone. The wisest man to ever live also saw life as meaningless. King Solomon wrote the book of proverbs, a book he wrote as a guide to righteousness and faith…and yet, there was a period in his life where he did not listen to his own advice and led a life of folly and selfishness. And then he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes. In Chapter 2 verse 10 to 11, he said, "I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. 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."
We work hard to achieve earthly riches. I was recently told that there was a man who held 2 full-time jobs for about 20 years hoping to retire before he was 50. He had bought land and owned a farm and still kept his two jobs. Recently, he was rushed to the hospital, both his kidneys had failed and needs regular dialysis treatment in order to stay alive. Who knows if he will be healthy enough to enjoy all the riches he amassed? It makes you stop and think, was it worth it?
Solomon says no. the wisdom that the Lord had given him did not completely disappear while he lived his life away from the counsel of the Lord. he lived his life the way he wanted to, he was the richest and most popular king of his time. kings from distant lands paid homage to him and gave him gifts. he had many, many, many wives...many of whom served and worshiped pagan gods. he did everything he wanted and got everything he wanted. yet when he reexamined his life, and all that he worked hard to achieve, he realized that it was meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
the Lord Jesus Christ sums everything up in Matthew 16:26 "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can man give in exchange for his soul?" what are the true benefits of gaining wealth, of having everything we want? while the Lord wants us to prosper here on earth, that does not mean we have to sacrifice the things that really matter. when the Lord blesses, He adds no sorrow with it. we obey Him, we follow Him, we develop that personal relationship with Him. we call Him our personal Lord and Savior...not just the One who died for all, but the God who in His infinite love, lowered Himself and allowed Himself to go through the pain and death that you and i deserved...He thought about each and everyone of us when He died on that cross. when we make Him Lord of our lives, He becomes our true friend...our only source and resource...we seek first His kingdom, we delight ourselves in Him and then He gives us the desires of our heart. He blesses us because we are faithful and we are obedient.
what is it that a man wants? man seems insatiable in his appetite for wealth and power. howard hughes and the other man i wrote about earlier gained the wealth they sought at the price of their sanity and health. they overlooked their relationship with family and friends, they didn't take care of their health, and more importantly, they neglected the relationship they should have developed with the Lord. solomon turned his life around...in the end of Ecclesiastes he wrote "now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: fear God and keep his commandments for this is the whole duty of man. for God will bring every deed into judgement, including everything hidden thing, whether it is good or evil" Ecclesiastes 12:13-14. in the end he acknowledged that it is the life with the Lord that is important - it is the whole duty of man, and all our actions are subject to God's judgement.
the Lord should never be 2nd best. He is to take priority in our lives...otherwise, life would be truly meaningless.
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