Ecclesiastes 1:⁸ “All things are full of weariness; a man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.” (ESV, emphasis added).

We will kick off today’s devotional with our final thought from yesterday, which flows from our anchor scripture. You cannot see finish (pidgin term for over-familiarity that leads to a loss of respect). Even in the things you think you are familiar with, there are endless possibilities that you have not experienced. Which is why familiarity is such a limiting factor with God, with people, even with your children. Some people are holding their children in contempt because they have become familiar with them. However, that child you are looking at as small, what he or she is capable of doing will shock you to your bones. Jesus’ mother refused to look at Jesus as small. She said to the servants at the wedding in Cana in John 2, “whatever He tells you to do, do it”.

When you become familiar with someone, a situation, your organization, boss, spouse, or child, you are actually limiting yourself. And it is because there are endless possibilities with the person that you have limited yourself [become familiar] with. You think, is it not just X, meanwhile X is capable of ten thousand other things that will blow your mind completely. Ecclesiastes 1:⁸ “…the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.” (ESV, emphasis added). The eyes cannot see finish. See finish is a limitation because when you think you have seen everything about something or someone, you have actually limited yourself. Why? “…the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.”

But in the context of this scripture as it pertains to life, Solomon was saying that he had seen everything, and it was because he had the resources to explore. Yet his conclusion at the end of it all is that all is vanity. You could see this scripture through the lens of someone going through a depressed state. And that may be correct; however, it is for a reason. It is because of the emptiness of beating around the bush. The person who is just beating around the bush cannot achieve much. In the office setting, for example, the person who is beating around the bush will not achieve much or deliver any project. If your life is going to be fruitful and productive, you need to stay with the heart of the matter.

Solomon had three hundred wives and seven hundred concubines. If he sleeps with one woman per night, one year [365 days] won’t be enough. The women only get to see their man or husband once every two years. Yet he said in Ecclesiastes 12:¹³ “That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.”

Prayer: Father, help me to rid myself of familiarity completely, in the Name of Jesus. Amen!

1 Corinthians 9:²⁶ “So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I fight to win. I’m not just shadow-boxing or playing around.” (LB)

Today, as we look at the Word of God, God will open our eyes to see as we ought to see, and we will hear as we ought to hear in the Mighty Name of Jesus. Have you met people who beat around the bush? You are talking about X, but they talk about A, B, and then C. And you say to them, “Look, we are talking about X”. And they say, “Wait…”, then they go to E and to F. And you say, “But X is before us. Let us focus on the heart of the matter!” Some lives are simply like that, lived as though people are shadow boxing, just beating the air. And Paul would say I don’t fight as if I am shadow boxing. I don’t live my life as though I am shadow boxing.

People in their sixties, seventies, and even people at the end of their lives are still shadow boxing. If you look at your life and you have spent twenty, thirty, or forty some years on this earth, and it is as if you are shadow boxing, then you need to zoom in on the heart of the matter. And the way it works is that when you zoom into the heart of the matter, everything else flows from it. Ecclesiastes 12:¹³ “That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.” If this were coming from someone in kindergarten, someone poor, someone who hasn’t experienced certain things, or someone limited in their world view, you would say the person has not really seen life.

This was coming from King Solomon himself. If we back up to Ecclesiastes 1:^1-2 “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” (ESV). This is Solomon, who had three hundred wives and seven hundred concubines in his exploration. He was determined to explore the world, explore enjoyment, and explore life. And by the time he had beaten around the bush to the north, south, east, and west, his conclusion was vanity of vanities. Ecclesiastes 1:^{3-4, & 8} “What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun? A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever. All things are full of weariness; a man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.” (ESV, emphasis added).

In other words, if you say you want to see, you cannot see finish (Nigerian pidgin English term for over-familiarity that leads to a loss of respect). They say familiarity breeds contempt, right? The problem is that they are limited in scope. Even in the things you think you are familiar with, there are endless possibilities that you have not experienced.

Prayer: Father, teach me to run straight to the goal with purpose in every step, in Jesus Name. Amen!