As Summer Begins...

How, I've often wondered, does Ecclesiastes complement the rest of Scripture? How can Solomon offer such profound wisdom found in Proverbs and also speak so disparagingly about the vanity of life found in Ecclesiastes? This particular book of the Bible has always bewildered me, coercing me to do what many Christians do in the face of puzzlement and confusion: ignore it, like we ignore the space behind the microwave or the cobwebs in sundry corners of our house.

Much of the book finally made sense after reading Doug Wilson's book Joy at the End of the Tether. In it, he states:

"Under the sun, vanity is God's scepter. For those who fear Him, He gives the gift of being able to actually enjoy this great big marching band of futility--the tubas of vanity bringing up the rear. God gives to a wise man the gift of watching, with a pious and grateful chuckle, one damn thing after another. All things considered, the furious activity of this world is about as meaningful as the half-time frenzy at the Super Bowl. But a wise man can be there and enjoy himself. This is the gift of God."

So much of this world is swimming in vanity, but God again, as He has done all throughout history, sovereignly allows His people to observe and even participate in the futility with the knowledge that He is the King of all--even the trivial, mundane in our lives. We have the unique permission to laugh about it all, just as God does (Psalms 2:4).

As we have attended two graduations over the last two weeks, I have spent time reflecting on the seasons of our lives (not to be confused with Days of Our Lives...) How they come and go, bringing blessings and cursings with each of them. How they can provoke sadness or nostalgia, bitterness or grief, and how too much time spent in such remembrance is unhealthy to the effect that we forget the present. As I am in the midst of an entirely new, exciting phase of my life--motherhood--I have simultaneously said goodbye to my high school years when the only stresses I experienced were the Latin test I had to take and whether I would sit beside "the boy." I have said goodbye to the Saturdays in college when I would sleep until 11 or 12, have brunch in the caf, and waste away the day by the pool. Do I miss those days? YES. Simplicity characterized my life then in so many ways. I treasure every moment of those phases in my life because of the people I met, the places I went, and what each of those contributed to the person I am today.

Nonetheless, I am reminded to be content with and enjoy the season of life I am in. Each season has its gifts, and lest I wake one day to grieve over the realization that I didn't redeem my time then, I pray daily that God would give me joy during this season--even if it's characterized by the following "changes:"

• The urgent need to be home by seven due to little man's bedtime.
• The severe anxiety brought on by post-sevenPM (aka Eli's bedtime) thunderstorms.
• Folding so many clothes on a daily basis. So many.
• Weighing the pros and cons of a breezy stop at the gas station to get a drink. (Is it REALLY worth it?)

I also pray that with each season that arrives, I glory in it. Not because I didn't enjoy the one that came before, but because God, in His perfect, orderly creation, has seen fit to sustain, bless, and protect me whether I'm at senior prom, sitting in a college classroom, or pureeing the fifteenth helping of carrots for our little man.