A couple of nights ago, I sat in my room with my Bible and a new Bible study I just started. I'm reading the book of Ecclesiastes—a book that focuses on the meaning of life.

For the first lesson, I had to read Ecclesiastes 1:1-11. It's a pretty depressing passage. It talks about how everything is meaningless. How history repeats itself, and yet people don't learn from it. The writer says that even the earth isn't satisfied, and that there is nothing new under the sun. Kind of a downer.

As I answered the questions in the study, I came to one that made me stop and think: It asked what things I see about the world that make me wonder if life is meaningless.

My pen flew across the page, filling up the tiny space with a list of things that sometimes make the world seem meaningless to me. I thought about the hundreds of soldiers who've died in the war, and the suffering of the civilians in Iraq. The way people care so much about politics, but they don't really seem to change things much.

I thought about how even things that seem interesting or enjoyable lose their newness and interest after a while. I thought about friendships that can be so difficult sometimes, and old problems from the past that can take a while to fix. I thought about the many good people I know who've had terrible things happen to them, even though they are trying to follow Christ. I remembered how some of my own attempts to do the right thing haven't always turned out well.

As I read over my list, I felt angry and a little scared. What if everything was meaningless? What if none of it mattered?

Then, I felt relief. Making that list helped me realize that I am not the first person to see how hard it can be to find meaning in life. And it helped me realize something else: How badly I need to see things through God's eyes. I need to see his purpose, to read the events of life through his lens. I need him to show me how to look at life so it will make sense.

Because I'd been honest enough to admit my struggle, I sensed God showing me how much I needed his perspective. That felt good. It reminded me of Matthew 5:3, which says "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven." (NIV) I felt like God was allowing me to see how poor my spirit is—that I don't have all of the answers in my heart and mind. I need his direction and guidance.

I thought about Psalm 51:6, which says that God desires "truth in the inner parts." It feels good to know that I can be honest with God about my struggles. I can show him what's really in my heart, and allow him to use it to bring me closer to him. When I'm willing to show him my questions, I can sense him pointing me toward answers—and reminding me that he is the source of strength and peace and meaning, even when things don't seem to make sense to me. He is not intimidated by my questions, even when they scare me.

Learning to listen,
LaTonya

Read more from 'Campus Life Connection'

				Try an Issue of Ignite Your Faith Free! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders. If you decide you want to keep Ignite Your Faith coming, honor your invoice for just $19.95 and receive eight more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issue is yours to keep, regardless. Give Ignite Your Faith as a gift Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!

FREE Newsletters Subscribe to the Ignite Your Faith Connection Newsletter: Subscribe to the Christian College Guide Newsletter:    RSS Feed   RSS Help