Without Restraint

"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." -Ecclesiastes 2:10-11 NIV

The above passage was used in a Bible study conducted at UC Davis on Thursday. As my group gathered around, we were asked, "If we had no restrauint, what would we do?" I jokingly replied that I would run up and down the street in traffic and act foolish.

The point of this discussion and what the Scripture refered to was that everything is meaningless apart from God. After all we achieve and the crazy, zany things we do in life, the only thing that matters is that we have a relationship with God through His Son Jesus Christ.

Be on Guard!

"Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him." - Luke 12:35-40 NIV

The above passage is a mouthful, but it is thought provoking. Jesus tells His followers to be on guard and be watchful at all times. After all, God expects us to do His work at all times because we never know when He will return.

Recently, at Sacramento City College, I along with other students passed out surveys to generate possible topics for Bible studies. An overwhelming amount of students responded. However, when I added them to an e-mail list, several addresses bounced back! Rather than get discouraged, I had to continue to maintain this list to let everyone else who expressed interest about upcoming events through our Campus Ministry. If I stop the work for the sake of discouragement, it will displease God.

So, be on guard and continue to do God's work and submit to his will.