“What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart 

     with which he toils beneath the sun?"

-Ecclesiastes 2:22

A recent Wall Street Journal opinion piece asked the question, Why is Everything an Existential Crisis? Mr. Hartz, a clinical psychologist writes, "So-called existential risks seem to be everywhere. Climate change, artificial intelligence, nuclear war, pandemics, and more threaten to return us to nothingness." 

He argues that when people feel threatened, they will look for a purpose to live for that they are convinced has meaning. "When people are reminded of their death, they try to boost their self-esteem, take steps to create a legacy, and defend their worldview—be it secular or religious." 

The existential threat may be a pandemic, overpopulation, global warming, or the deportation of vulnerable illegal immigrants. In the absence of deeper meaning a purpose these politically charged issues become life or death issues. Hartz writes, "This temporarily makes their anxiety feel more manageable, but it’s likely to contribute to fanaticism and emotional dysregulation around politics."

How do we identify a REAL existential threat and what answers are the God? In Ecclesiastes 2:12-26, Solomon considers these questions and lays out a path for true meaning and enjoyment in this life and a greater reward in the next. 

This Sunday, we will continue a new summer series through the Book of Ecclesiastes. This book was written by Solomon, one of the wisest, richest, and most successful men who have ever lived. Solomon had the resources to have and do anything his heart desired and he did. At the end of those pursuits, he said it was all vanity and chasing after the wind. The question he asks in Ecclesiastes 2:1 is "I will test myself with pleasure," will it give me satisfaction and fulfillment?