All The Things
If you are a praying person, what topics do you typically cover in your prayers? Health? Work? Relationships? Direction for your life? Help in any area? Me too.
Perhaps you have loftier goals for your prayers and/or your God. If you become aware of the poverty or famine in a particular region of the world, do you find yourself asking God to fix it? Have you ever prayed for peace in a conflict or more broadly for the world? I have to admit, my prayers tend to center on the smaller items that are closer to home. But big, hairy, audacious prayers are good as well!
So why doesn’t the writer of Ecclesiastes mention any of these in the oft-repeated phrase, “A person can do no better than to eat, drink, and enjoy their work?”
The Stoic approach
We tend to be concerned about any number of items. Naturally, the issues in our lives that cause us the most pain garner the most attention. That was the subject of my last post. Sometimes, the cause of our pain is something that has been added to our lives: a frightening diagnosis, car troubles, the looming failure of a relationship, death. Often, something is missing and we grieve its absence: health, job, relationships, a person. Whether it’s a knife stuck in our back or a scalpel that has surgically removed a chunk of our flesh or our lives, the cuts awaken us and fill our thoughts. When this happens, it’s only natural to pray.
The writer of Ecclesiastes, however, seems to focus elsewhere. Just eat and drink (if food and drink are available to you – but not too much of either!) and find joy in your work. There is an almost stoic feel to this advice. A Stoic believes they don’t control the world around them, only how they respond—and that they must always respond with courage, temperance, wisdom, and justice. Stoicism suggests that we should be indifferent to the things of this world, strive for virtue in our lives, and trust that God has everything under control. Eat, drink, enjoy your work. Keep chugging along and do your best with what you have. Be a good person; find happiness. Don’t be overwhelmed by “all the things” or let them take over your attention. Put the blinders on, set your nose to the grindstone, don’t sweat the small stuff…you get the idea.
What about the rest?
But that’s not what grabs our attention. For most people, life is made up of “all the things.” The things that we have and the things we still want; the things we love and the things we hate; the things that hurt and the things that bring joy; the things that fill our days and the things that take our breath away. Without “the things,” aren’t we just slightly modified clones? Aren’t our lives just spent in meaningless pursuits? And if we only focused on food, drink, and work, what would we spend our time in prayer on?
Paul says to pray continually. Try limiting your prayer concerns to food, drink, and work and see how long it takes for them to become extremely monotonous. Eliminate the emotional items and offer your prayers up to God. “Hi, God. Me again. Toast and water is fine for today, but I wouldn’t say no to a feast. If you have some meaningful and interesting work, that would be great. Otherwise, mind-numbing and menial is fine as well. Thanks! Oh, and if you could help me enjoy whatever you give me, that would be great!” Rinse and repeat every day for the rest of your life.
All the things…
During my time as a pastor, I remember two sermons that seem to have really hit home with the congregation, in particular the men. I have no idea what was going on in the rest of the sermons. I only judge these as impactful by the number of men who approached me immediately after the sermon to say, “I know what you mean.”
The first response was more to the illustration than the topic itself. (They warned us in seminary to not let the illustration overwhelm the message. In this case, I failed. Even I don’t remember the topic of the sermon!) The illustration was about wetting the bed. This source of shame that lasted into my pre-teen years that I thought was mine and mine alone…was an experience shared by many others. The illustration struck home and I was able to share a connection with many men in the congregation.
The second sermon was from a much loved passage in Romans. My marriage was falling apart; my ministry was suffering. As I announced that I was going to be taking an unplanned 3-month leave of absence, I preached from Romans 8:28. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
“That verse is a great comfort to many,” I said. “But if I’m honest, I really don’t want all things. In fact, many of the ‘things’ Paul is mentioning are things I wish God would keep from me rather than working through them.”
When the service was over, a long line of people formed to wish me well in my leave of absence and to say, “Me too.” Deep spoke to deep; pain called out to pain. We connected over unanswered prayers and unfulfilled longings.
All the things. All the longings and all the losses; all the joys and all the sorrows; all the love and all the hatred; all the work and all the unemployment; all the excitement and all the boredom. “All the things” are what make up our lives. They give shape and color to who we are. They draw us into relationship with each other and with God. They fill our prayers with passion and heart. All the things.
What if…?
What if our prayers were answered the way we asked them and the only things we had in life were the things we wanted? Who would we be today?
What if all our dreams came true and we never lived a nightmare? What would we know about ourselves? Our world? God?
What if we were able to go through our lives with only “good” things and never had to overcome anything difficult? When would we connect with the people around us?
What if we didn’t have “all the things” and only had the things we wanted? Would our lives be enriched? Impoverished?
