Skip to main content

Where Can I Get No Thinking Done?

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going. ~Ecclesiastes 9:10

Maybe this will be a good way for all of us to let out our frustration today. After all, it is a Monday.

When I first read this verse, the part about no work and no thought instantly stood out to me. The second thought to hit me was that this verse makes complete sense when you consider Sheol, or Hell, is where people go who don't choose God. (It's Monday, can we keep the deep theology to a minimum today?)

The only place devoid of God would very much be lacking in wisdom and knowledge. Clearly nobody down there is thinking. And much to the chagrin of some guys in my youth group, there is no work in Hell. I say chagrin because I recently shared with them scripture that talks about us doing work in Heaven. I also say chagrin (now 3 times) because it makes me sound smart.

Solomon was correct to encourage us all to do what we do with all our might. It is especially true for those who do not know God, because this very well will be the last place they can do so, that which we were created to do.

But hold on. I said this was my second thought? So what was my first?

My first thought when I read Solomon's wisdom was how much fun it would be to fill in this blank.

No work? No thought? No wisdom? So that makes this like __________________.
Feel free to fill in the blank with whatever place you think is most devoid of thought or wisdom or work. Here's a few that I thought of:

  • my office on Fridays.
  • a preschool.
  • a college dorm.
  • board meetings.

Maybe I should stop before I get myself in trouble. How would you fill in the blank?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Accountable

I recently officiated a wedding. The ceremony was simple, lovely, and ended with another couple professing to keep the covenant of marriage. But it all started with a clarification...from me. At our first premarital counseling session, as I have done with every couple I have agreed to marry, I clarified a couple of matters. First, I officiate Christian weddings, where both spouses-to-be are professing Christians. I firmly believe that marriage is difficult enough, without adding disagreements about God into the mix. Second, as a minister of Jesus Christ, I believe the pastor’s role in a wedding is to represent the blessing of God on that union. So we have several sessions of premarital counseling where we discuss married life. It’s not that I have this imaginary card in my head, with a picture of me on the front and my stats on the back. (You know, like a baseball card.) Ok, I do picture cards. Pastor cards! And being a competitive guy, I want my stats to look good. The number of coupl...

The Facebook Maybe

Granted, I'm a pastor. I have Type-A tendencies. Ok, my tendencies border on freakish OCD behavior patterns, but... Few things bother me more than the Facebook 'maybe'. I suppose I could go on and on about the grey areas of our society and the refusal of people to accept absolute standards. I could discuss the great need of people to accept that what is wrong for one person is likely wrong for everyone. I should certainly be concerned about mentioning that someone might have sin in their life. But I don't believe the Facebook 'maybe' is quite sin. Perhaps if I were coming up with new sins, I would add this to the list. But alas... Some might think the Facebook 'maybe' did not exist prior to the Internet, but they would be wrong. When I was in high school and asked a girl out on a date, I would normally be told that if they had no other plans, if nobody else called them, if there was nothing good on television and their hair did not need washing, then per...

I Need the Boldness of Some Sinners I Know

Have you ever come across someone who was really bold, but not necessarily in the good way? It's the person you agreed to give a ride to, and along the way they ask you if they can make a second stop. It's someone asking for money and then you watch them spend it on something they didn't need. It could be the child who comes to the dinner table and announces why they don't like what you cooked. Maybe it is the people who refuse to help, yet criticize the work being done.  The nerve of some people, right? It's the guy being crucified next to God. This guy being crucified for being a thief. Yeah, the guy who, according to Roman rule, deserved to be there. We're given no indication that this guy, this thief, had anyone there who was about to miss him. That guy. He turns to Jesus and asks if he can get into Heaven.  Can you believe that? via GIPHY The only thing more incredible than his request is the answer he receives from Jesus.  Yes. Ye...