The thing that stood out to me right off in verses 1-11, was how many times Solomon uses 'I', 'my', and 'me'. I counted the word 'I' twenty times in verses 1-11 alone. He turned to himself. His own thoughts and abilities. He didn't try to learn from someone else's walk. It seems like learning from his Dad, David, would have been a great start. He didn't look to the Lord for direction. He searched for fulfillment on his own. He tried to find fulfillment in mirth, laughter, wine, folly, works, wisdom, labor, houses, vineyards, orchards, pools, having servants and maidens, cattle, silver, gold, singers, and instruments. Solomon was 'great, and increased more than all that were before' him in Jerusalem. (vs 9) Verse 10 says, 'And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labor: and this was my portion of all my labor.' After looking at all the works of his own hands, he was still empty and concluded that 'there was no profit under the sun.' (vs 11)
Take some time to write down on a piece of paper the things that fill your life. Look over it really good and then think on it throughout the day. Have you found fulfillment in those things alone? In your quiet moments of reflection, do you still feel empty? If God is not our foundation, everything else is useless. We were not made to just find pleasure in the gifts God gives us, but rather in the giver of the gifts.
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