W1D4 The Human Way

READ THE BIBLE

Luke 15:11 Jesus continued: ‘There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, “Father, give me my share of the estate.” So he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

For further reading:

Ecclesiastes: 2:10 I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure; my heart took delight in all my labour, and this was the reward for all my toil. 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.

REFLECT ON WHAT IT SAYS

What makes a person truly happy in life? Going out with friends or a quiet night in with a book? Thinkers and scholars have discussed this question for years—including these two ideas!

The richest, most powerful person in the world—and in all of history—was probably a king who lived centuries ago. He had what seemed like limitless power and wealth to do whatever he wanted. So he ran an experiment with his own life that lasted years. He used his wealth and power to make the best possible life that anyone could have. First, he tried lots of different pleasures including lots of relationships, then he tried building a huge and impressive empire and home for himself, after that he tried education and learning, finally he turned to being a hard worker. During these years and many experiments he made loads and loads of mistakes in life too. After many years and at the end of this great experiment, his conclusion was this: none of it actually works, none of it truly satisfies you, none of it makes you really happy. (The king’s name was king Solomon from the Bible, famous for his wealth and power, and you actually just read a few of his thoughts, in those last Bible verses.)

So, the question is: “if none of those things makes us really satisfied in life, then what does?” His answer at the end of it all was really simple, but deeply moving. He said a person only needs three things to make themselves truly happy and satisfied in life: knowing God while you are young; honouring and respecting God in all of life, and living life by following what God says in his word.

The young man in our story today did none of these 3 things, but went off and did his own experiment, too. As we read: it didn’t work out any better for him either, but went badly wrong! He ended up in an awful situation; alone, broke and broken. He was in total need and in that place we are told “no one gave him anything.” No help, no love, no food, no family, no respect, nothing! What a sad, tragic and miserable place to end up in, and so many people’s lives can end up in this kind of need too. Maybe yours has in some way also?

But good news is at hand, things wonderfully turn around for him, as they can for us as well, and we will discover more about that tomorrow.

RELATE IT TO YOUR LIFE

Am I truly satisfied and fulfilled in life? Or, am I like the famous king or this young guy here, trying to experiment and find out what will work for me in life to make me truly settled, at peace, and fully satisfied in life?

Have I lost anything in life because of bad decisions I have made?

Would I like to recover those things and keep them?

RESPOND WITH A DECLARATION

“God I declare that if I honour and respect you, follow what you say in your word, and find a relationship with you as soon as I can in life, my life will change and I will find true satisfaction and joy. ”