Here are some questions based on last Sunday’s sermon text (Ecclesiastes 2:1-11), in case they’re helpful to you for personal growth or group discussion…

• [1, 3, 10-11] Solomon experimented with various earthly pleasures, to see if they could make this brief life worthwhile or bring lasting satisfaction. The wealthiest man in the world could afford to try anything and everything—and nothing was enough. Do you believe his report (and the identical reports of many “successful” people)? Do you ever feel, “If only I could get ‘X,’ I would be satisfied”? What is “X” for you? What reason do you have for thinking “X” would satisfy you, if you’ve never found lasting satisfaction before? Is it a problem with “X,” or is it a problem with you?

• [2] They say laughter is the best medicine, and it is true that it can have beneficial effects, socially and physiologically. But Ecclesiastes says of laughter, “It is mad.” He’s saying that humor (comedy, mirth) doesn’t make life worthwhile, and using it as a coping mechanism because we’re unable to face the difficulties of this life amounts to insanity. Do you laugh when you’re uncomfortable, nervous, feeling vulnerable? Why? Rather than just putting on a smile, do you think it’s possible to find the spiritual resources to face the difficult circumstances of life in this broken world? Where would you look for such resources? Can you pray and ask Jesus for help, instead of deflecting with jokes?

• [3] Many people have looked for help, for answers, for solutions, for distraction, for relief at the bottom of a bottle. We can numb ourselves temporarily with drugs and alcohol, and replace pain with chemical pleasure. If you’ve tried this, you’re not the first. Those who have gone before you (especially Solomon) can attest that it won’t fix your real problems. Sometimes God allows us to walk self-destructive paths like alcoholism in order to let us see that those paths are dead-ends. Have you experienced the severe mercy of God in coming to the end of your unraveling rope and turning to drugs/alcohol, only to find things made worse? What does God reveal to you about yourself and about himself in moments like that? What is it about a relationship with Jesus that can change an addict’s life? Does a relationship with Jesus make everything in your life nicer and easier? Does it always feel better to follow Jesus than to have your favorite drink?

• If nothing in this world can make this brief life worthwhile or bring lasting satisfaction, how should we relate to the things of this world? Give up all pleasures? No. The Apostle Paul writes, “Everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer” (1 Timothy 4:4-5). Rather than rejecting God’s gifts, we are to receive them as gifts, given by God to enjoy in relationship with him. We can truly enjoy all good things—laughter, wine, hobbies, homes, gardens, etc.—without investing our souls in them, as if they could save us. When we are reminded that these pleasures won’t last forever, we can trace that disappointment back to God, and be grateful that “in his presence there is fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11). Do you find life’s pleasures to be more enjoyable when you bring them into your relationship with God? How do you know that God wants you to enjoy his good gifts in this life? Does receiving gifts from God make it easier to share and give gifts to others?