11 Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all. 12 For man does not know his time. Like fish that are taken in an evil net, and like birds that are caught in a snare, so the children of man are snared at an evil time, when it suddenly falls upon them. ~ Ecclesiastes 9:11-12
What is Solomon talking about? Death. No one knows the hour or the day when death will come calling and eternity comes crashing in. The American novelist, short-story writer, and the 1954 winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, the late Earnest Hemingway, had a fixation with suicide, especially after his father shot himself in 1928. He was reported as saying, “I’ll probably go the same way.”
The Hemingway family is not known for their strong religious beliefs or for their steadfast faith in the LORD Jesus. But instead, they are known, first of all, for Ernest Hemingway’s writings. But they’re also known for alcohol and drug addictions, depression, mental issues, suicide, and sexual molestation.
When that happens, despair sets in because Jesus is the only hope for a future. It’s only through the power of His Name and the cleansing of His blood that can break such family curses.
God said:
11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11NIV
Our hope and our strength are found in the LORD. Beware of despair, it breeds darkness as it did the Hemingway family. A generational curse. Earnest Hemingway committed suicide in 1961 at the age of 61. As did his father before him, Clarence “Ed” Hemingway, in 1928. Ursula Hemingway, his sister, also took her own life. As did his brother, Leicester Hemingway. His other brother, Ernest Hemingway Jr., also died by suicide. His granddaughter, Margaux Hemingway, committed suicide in 1996. Mariel, Margaux’s older sister, contemplated suicide herself.
God has put eternity in the heart of mankind, and we cannot get away from it. Without Jesus, the future is bleak and dark. There is no hope; deep down, we feel hopeless because we are. Whether or not those without Jesus will admit it, there is a longing for stability, hope, something more than what this life can offer. It’s a longing for something to fill the void. And only Jesus can fill the void. Because the void is in the shape of a cross.
The world is trying to fill that cross-shaped void with sex, drugs, music, entertainment, social media, alcohol, and the like. They’re searching for eternity because God has placed eternity in the heart of mankind. They don’t understand the longing, the emptiness, or even the loneliness. The world needs Jesus, and they don’t even realize it.
Dear LORD, please forgive me for all the times I didn’t share Your Gospel of hope with others. Please forgive me for all the times I kept Your Word to myself. Please give me the boldness, wisdom, and love to share Your Word with others. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.