Everything is Meaningless

"Everything fails, everything runs it's course"

"Everything is meaningless, I want more than simple cash can buy"

Recently I enrolled in the University of Southern Queensland in order to complete an external subject this semester and count it towards my compulsory elective. At the beginning of this week I received a letter from USQ which simply stated "Congratulations for choosing to study at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ)!" along with a USQ username and password. Other than feeling slightly bemused by the ridiculous exclamation mark, I thought that 'congratulations' was an odd choice of words. A few days later I received a USQ student pack, which contained some brochures which I briefly glanced at, a magnet, some stickers (how novel) and a wall calendar. After deciding that most of the pack was useless I figured that the wall calendar could at least tell me what day it was, so I opened it out and had a squiz. The background of the calendar looks like intergalactic pish posh; lots of stars, bright lights and electric sparks. Towards the bottom of the calendar is a large orb which seems to be radiating quite a lot of electricity. The orb is suspended by two hands (incidentally the manicured hands of a woman). The picture reminded me of pictures that you often see in Christian literature that depict the hands of God lovingly supporting the world, His creation. However this orb isn't the world, it's just a confusion of colour and light. I suppose that is significant of the humanistic view that 'the world is what you make it'. Anywho.. plastered across the top of the calendar is the slogan "Fulfilling Lives". I had a flick through some of the other USQ paraphernalia and realised that this phrase is used on all of their letter heads. I was quite taken aback by this. Although I now understood why I had been congratulated for having the wisdom to enroll in USQ. Clearly my life is about to be fulfilled. I can't help but wonder, why would a University claim to fulfill lives? Especially a University in Toowoomba. Furthering one's education through institutions such as University is certainly a good thing, but it will not fulfill your life. It may increase job prospects, allow for the development of discipline, facilitate personal and academic growth, provide opportunities for social networking and grant you a four year reprieve from full time work, but it will not fulfill your life.

Switchfoot would have to be one of my favourite bands. The two lines at the beginning of this post are taken from their song "Happy is a Yuppie Word" which features on their album "Nothing is Sound". This song is inspired by the book of Ecclesiastes, which I have just finished reading. For those who aren't familiar with Ecclesiastes, the chapter begins with:

"The words of the Teacher, son of David, king of Jerusalem: "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."

That's a pretty confronting way to start a chapter. Everything is meaningless. How encouraging. However it does motivate you to continue reading. I really enjoyed reading through Ecclesiastes. Particularly with the onset of another Uni year close at hand, it has been helpful in shaping my perspective on work. The tension between the temporary nature of work completed 'under the sun' and the undeniable necessity of work is highlighted throughout the chapter. As I was reading Ecclesiastes I couldn't help but ponder the USQ slogan "Fulfilling Lives". Many people enroll in University in an attempt to achieve prestige and wealth. Yet these are essentially meaningless.

Ecclesiastes 2:11: "Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun."

Chapter 3:10 states: "Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless."

Isn't this so true of our Western culture? The more we get, the more we want. Contentment is an unfamiliar concept to most people. We look to things like University degrees and high paying salaries to fulfill our lives, but this only amounts to a chasing after the wind.

So what does this mean? Should we become unmotivated hippies who misquote passages from Ecclesiastes as a convenient excuse to forfeit the labour force? As appealing as I find the hippy lifestyle, that probably isn't the best solution. Eccesiastes 2:24-25 says "A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without Him, who can eat or find enjoyment?".

What gives our toiling under the sun meaning and significance? Seeking to give God the glory that He is due through our every action. How do we achieve this? By "remembering our Creator" in all things (Ecc. 12). Work cannot fulfill our lives because it was never designed to. It is temporary, a vapour in the wind. Only something eternal has the capacity to fulfill our lives, and provide a hope that will not fade.