Life Under the Sun - Bible Study Book: The Unexpectedly Good News of Ecclesiastes

“What is the purpose of life? How can we find meaning and joy? Does our work matter? Where is God in all this? These deeply human questions are not bound by specific time and place. The same things we wrestle with today are the same things the Teacher wrestled with thousands of years ago. And by giving attention to the timeless wisdom of this ancient text, we might just discover how to navigate our present lives.” “Despite the repetitive nature of life under the sun, we know we are heading toward something. We realize there is more to life than simply moving in circles.” Life is like a record player. A record on a turntable appears to be spinning, but it’s the needle that’s spiraling inward from edge of the record, unlocking music with every turn. We, too, find ourselves in the same place, facing the same challenges, asking the same questions, over and over again. But with each cycle, each season, each turn of the sun, God is drawing us to the Center: Himself. If you’ve ever been tempted to think your work is meaningless, to wonder whether your sacrifices are in vain, to think that God has forgotten you, meet Jesus. “Like a grain of wheat, He laid His body into the ground, trusting that the Father would raise Him up again and bring life to the world. So too, when we're tempted to despair, to think that our work doesn't matter or that God has overlooked it, all we must do is remember the resurrection. God has already proven His faithfulness.” If you’ve ever grappled with the limits of education, work, pleasure, community, justice, and time, if you’ve ever looked at the myriad facets through which we derive purpose–and all the ways we're disappointed–Hannah Anderson’s Life Under the Sun is for you. “No longer do we count on life under the sun to reward good and punish evil. No longer do we put confidence in our work or efforts to bring us goodness. No longer do we put our hope in youth or our own wisdom.” Instead of searching for significance in life under the sun, we find fulfillment in the Way, the Truth, and the Life beyond the sun: the Son of God, the Creator and Clockmaker who is beyond time itself. And in our trust, we find rest.