I had a restless night the other day. I woke just after midnight with my mind going, which happens from time to time. I know when it does I just have to get up and let it wind down before I can sleep again. I tend to pull out my Bible and read to calm my mind, as it does, and was drawn to Ecclesiastes.

8 All things are ^[a]full of labor;
Man cannot express it.
The eye is not satisfied with seeing,
Nor the ear filled with hearing. (Ecclesiastes 1:8 NKJV)

I am already a restless thinker, and deep nights cause those thoughts to turn dark. Also, when you get to an age it is easy to read Solomon’s writing and see the vanity in life. See the restless striving and endless laboring, spending, mending and fretting about every little thing. And in those later years, in the deep night, you can see the truth of Solomon’s words and know “Man cannot express it!”

It is not that life is fruitless or useless, but that it is simply a repetition with no end. From my father, to myself, to my son and daughter, to their children, life goes on in its ceaseless cycle. I know where Solomon, who had everything, ends up in Ecclesiastes and I agree with him.

Reflect on: Where life has brought you and what has meaning.