On my way to buy a new pair of shoes…

On my way to buy a new pair of shoes…for my daughter (an outing which turned into more than a pair of shoes, as it always does) we were struck by a sobering reminder of the fragility of life.

With the summer drawing to an end and the school supply list looming, I set out with my youngest daughter to do a little school prep shopping.  Thinking we would just do shoes on this occasion, and perhaps a new school bag, we headed out on an expedition to her favorite store, some forty-five minutes away.  On the way, as I was deep in thought, thinking about whatever it was I was thinking about, and as my daughter was in the back seat of the gas-guzzling SUV watching a movie, traffic on the Interstate came to an abrupt halt.  We crawled through miles of traffic for some thirty minutes until we finally figured out what the problem was.

Usually, on this stretch of highway, such slowdowns are the result of road construction or some debris on the highway.  On this day, however, the halt in traffic was the result of a more difficult reality.  As we were making our way down the highway, headed west, it became clear that no vehicles were now traveling east.  Sure enough, as we finally got up to the problem area, we saw what had taken place.  A pile-up of several cars had everyone headed east at a complete stop, and it had captured the attention of everyone headed west and just about shut down the flow of traffic on our side.

As we got closer to the accident we noticed just how bad it was.  I have seen a good number of highway pile-ups in my lifetime, but I cannot recall seeing one that told a more sad story.  It was clear, driving next to the wreckage, that in all likelihood, very few, if anyone, actually survived.  Each car that was part of the disaster was totally mangled and charred.  At the back end of several cars was an eighteen-wheeler, with much damage, that had clearly run into everyone ahead.  The cars, trucks, and SUVs were in such a twisted mess that I did not want to imagine how the rescue workers even got people out.

As we continued our drive, my daughter and I prayed aloud for anyone that may have survived and for the families of those who may have been lost.  After we finished praying, I spent the rest of the drive reflecting on just how quickly our lives can be changed.  The scriptures tell us that “life is but a vapor”.  We are here today and then gone in an instant.  I cherished the remainder of the day with my daughter as we shopped till we dropped, and thoroughly enjoyed the day.

I witnessed this incident after having spent several days reading and considering the words of Ecclesiastes.  Essentially, the book is about all that life “offers” us, and the meaninglessness of all that is separated from a God-centered perspective.  All the pleasures, accomplishments, desires, dreams, pains, loss, and the mundane…all of it, is meaningless, ultimately without purpose, if God does not permeate it all.  In the end what do we have if we have not walked with and known our Creator intimately?  As the scriptures say in another passage, “What does it profit a man to gain the world and yet lose his soul?”  Our bodies can be taken in an instant, and our souls remain to give an account to God.

As the impression of that wreckage remains with me, I am more keenly aware of the words which bring the book of Ecclesiastes to a close.  These last two verses, whether we like it or not, whether we acknowledge them or not, sum up this journey we call life.  Here are the words we must all keep central in our lives as we experience all that life brings us,

The end of the matter; all has been heard.  Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.  For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil. (12:13,14)

A knowledge of God, and intimacy with Him–this is the whole of the matter.  This is the purpose of life in a nutshell.  When our lives are drawn to a close, this will be the thing which makes all the difference.  May we live as if it is what makes the difference now.  Aside from a life-giving walk with Him nothing this life brings our way can fulfill us.  Our lives are indeed but a vapor.  Consider the brevity of life, and the nature of your walk with God.  If we are here today let us count it a gift for we are not promised tomorrow.

Grace and Peace,

Bruce Smith

optimuslife.org

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