It's our turn

 

Ecclesiastes 1:1-11

I've always enjoyed a good movie. Well, not always. At one point, I learned something that disillusioned me for a bit. Apparently, there are six, maybe seven, basic story plots. Consider any movie or novel genre you want. No matter how different the characters seem or what's unique about the setting, we've already seen it. The story itself is not new. It's following a basic, human story telling trajectory we've heard in every story. That made watching movies a little boring for me. You already knew what was going to happen once you figured out which plot it was. Well, whatever plot structure it falls into, I started watching movies again. I learned to love hearing new takes on the old stories. We all do. That's why we keep watching and reading. Now, that's part of the joy of watching--seeing what a creative mind can do with something we already know. I've met a bunch of Christians who aren't quite fond of the book of Ecclesiastes. It's too dark or joyless. Almost depressing. I suppose we have expectations of how the Bible should sound. The book's repeated theme of vanity doesn't sound happy-clappy enough for us. Everything is vanity, vapor or meaningless because you'll never see anything new. We feel like we're doing something different with our lives, but, in reality, it's the same story every generation. But I love Ecclesiastes. Instead of being off put by the idea, the vanity of everything puts a lot into perspective. About our life experiences, I like to say, "It's our turn." It's our turn to do what's been done so many times before by other people. It's our turn to rejoice. To mourn. It's our turn to do something with what's all around us. We may be telling and living the same life stories. But it's our turn to do so. That's exciting enough to be inspired by the meaningless of it all. Stay blessed...john