in which to live, so we had better enjoy the work that we do (5:18). Humanly speaking, perhaps this may seem to be one of our inal ienable rights. There is an aspect which can be dangerous, about which he warns us. It is the idea of possibly getting lost in reminiscing (7:10). The tendency for all of us is to bring back to mind only the things we want to remember. We forget the long days of labor, the hard work that is put in, the agony of getting along with people and overlooking bitter problems. As Vance Havner has said, “The good old days may never have been!" We are not to daydream about the past. There is a present job that needs to be done (Philippians 3:13). We cannot be content in glorying in past achievements nor in hang ing our heads in continual shame for some sin that has been con fessed and forsaken. Further, we are not to put off with excuses what needs to be done (Ecclesiastes 11:4-6). None of us can tell what is going to happen tomorrow; we need to get on with the task today. Too often we put off doing today what we feel can be set aside until tomorrow. We do not have to go to extremes but there should be a God-given de sire to face even adverse situations. Tasks can quickly pile up and be fore long a person is inundated and overwhelmed, unable to cope with his circumstances. A person will find greater satisfaction in his job if he keeps his work in proper order and perspective. Solomon also tells us that we can enjoy what we are doing if we do it well (7:1). A good name is most valuable. You do not get it if you have a reputation for doing Page 38
a poor job. If you are a slothful person on the other hand, things are not going to turn out well (10:18). Our primary responsibility is to obey God. One of the basic rea sons is because God judges (12:13, 14). Solomon realized that "God shall bring every work into judg ment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil." He reminds us that we ought to be very discreet when we enter the house of God, listening rather than speaking ourselves (5:1, 2, 7). The sinner is going to be judged ultimately andyeffective- ly. This is why man is counseled to fear God (8:12, 13). There is another reason why we ought to obey God. We should realize that He is the One who created us (7:29). Man can only function best if he follows the guidelines of the One who made him. If you purchase a new auto mobile, you would be foolish to operate it in a manner against the instructions of the manufacturer. Instead you would probably take the owner's manual to make cer tain that you followed the pre scribed requirements. What would you think of someone who would object, "I don't care what they say, I'm going to put water in the gas tank and sand in the crankcase in stead of oil." It would not take long for the disastrous results. Yet some people treat the Lord this way. While He created them, they are in essence saying, "God, I do not care if You did make me and know more about me than I know about myself. I have got ideas and I am going to use them." The path of life is strewn with such wrecks of humanity—physically, emotion
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