Advent Devotional by David Fulk

Ecclesiastes 9

…eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart... ( Ecclesiastes 9:7)

Thoughts when I first read this chapter: How depressing. Death? Meaningless life? The human heart is full of evil? Don’t use this writer for a marketing campaign!

A second look changed my thinking. Spoiler alert. We’re all going to die, but the key truth here isn’t about dying or a meaningless life. It’s about how we choose to live the life we have. Now.

My childhood church experiences stressed rules of “thou shalt not” and the consequence of guilt when rules were broken. That disappeared when I arrived at 2BC in 1985 (40-year pin, here I come!).

For me, Second became a place that embodies a New Testament companion to this text. It’s John 10:10, “…I came that you might have life, and have it in abundance.” So many influences helped me discover that faith wasn’t to be lived under a cloud of guilt. Here, I’ve learned the best way to be a witness in this world is to live in this world.

I’m reminded of a line from the movie “Mame” when the title character advises her assistant, “Life is a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving to death…Live! Live! Live!”

The scripture writer would caution us here to not confuse “Live! Live! Live!” with “More! More! More!” The text tells us to do things intentionally and in meaningful ways; to focus on the quality of time, not the quantity of time. A timely reminder during this season of rush and hurry.

A couple of things I do intentionally each season to bring myself joy and a happy heart include William Jewell’s The City Come Again, my family’s annual neighborhood carol sing, and sitting at home in the library at night listening to holiday music with only the tree lights and window candles aglow. New to this list is going to the Kauffman Gardens for the poinsettia display in the Orangery. The colors are breathtaking, offering a few moments to be still and reflect.

Finding joy and a merry heart are not reserved solely for Advent and Christmastide. The text beckons us to live in the moment all the year. I hope we will. I look forward to seeing you frequently at life’s banquet. “Live! Live! Live!”

David M. Fulk