Show me Your ways, O Lord, teach me Your paths; guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long. Psalm 25:4-5.

He who believes in Me . . . out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. John 7:38.

On that day you will realize that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you. John 14:20.

I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love…may know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16, 17, 19.

This morning in Hearing God by Dallas Willard, I loved what he wrote: “Our only protection from our own pride, fear, ignorance and impatience as we study the Bible is fellowship with the living Word, the Lord Himself, invoked in constant supplication from the midst of His people, as we see in this stanza from the hymn, “Break Thou the Bread of Life” by Mary A. Lathbury: O send Thy Spirit, Lord, now unto me, That He may touch my eyes, and make me see; Show me the truth concealed within Thy word, And in Thy book revealed, I see thee Lord.”

I wish I could read that depth of love in our next chapter, Ecclesiastes 5. I don’t want my struggle in reading Ecclesiastes to color what you read. Reading some of the verses reminds me of when we attended a church where obedience was stressed. Guard your steps when you go into the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. A dream comes when there are many cares, and many words mark the speech of a fool. When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin…Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore fear God. v. 1-6, 7. Solomon’s conclusion in this chapter? This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them – for this is their lot. Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil – this is a gift of God. They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart. v. 18-20. That doesn’t sound like a relationship of being.

Have you met Creator God – Father…Son…Spirit? He’s here. Always. If you long for a relationship that isn’t distant but deeply personal, ask. Let Him guide your heart to see through the eyes of His Love for you. You are not alone. Being with God is not “keeping occupied” or our lot in a meaningless pursuit under the sun. When you have had your fill of that kind of life and long for more…I lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. Psalm 121:1, 2. He has made such incredible beauty…and with His help we can let go of hardness, judging, striving, worry, fear. Who determines the worth of any one or of any thing? God. And He loves us with a love so deep it cannot be measured. I love to imagine what it will be like when Jesus returns. My imagination can only go so far and that is good because what He has planned is so much greater and more wonderful than anything my heart can determine being earth-bound as it is. And so, for now in my walk with God, I will be open to all He has for me. I will trust Him to lead me out of the darkness of hardness, judging, striving, worry, fear…and lead me into the glorious Light of His Love for us. What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived – the things God has prepared for those who love Him – these are the things God has revealed to us by His Spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:9-10. Solomon couldn’t reveal these things. Our God can.