The Cycle of Life

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Does life sometimes feel like an endless cycle? We wake, work, eat, sleep, and repeat, wondering where it all leads.

The sun rises, and the sun goes down, and hastens to the place where it rises.
The wind blows to the south and goes around to the north; around and around goes the wind,
and on its circuits the wind returns. All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full.
to the place where the streams flow, there they flow again. — Ecclesiastes 1:5-7

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            These are the words of Solomon. They paint a picture of the perpetual motion of nature: the sun's endless cycle, the wind’s continuous currents, and the streams flowing endlessly to the sea, but the sea never fills or overflows. It's an analogy for the repetitive rhythms and monotony of our lives. A life that can sometimes feel stuck in an endless loop where we are constantly filling our time with meaningless activities to get ahead and find purpose but always feeling empty. It makes us question what the point is all about. 

 

            The natural order of life on Earth requires an endless, repetitive, loop for survival. Have you ever thought about that? This consistency provides assurances. Imagine if the sun and moon changed their cycle for one minute. What if the rivers changed the direction they flowed, or the winds ceased blowing?

 

            Life may feel like an endless grind and series of routines that never change, but take heart, you’re not alone. As men, we are always seeking meaning in our lives. It’s a longing for purpose, direction, and fulfillment in the human heart. Instead of living in frustration, shift your focus and recall God’s design and sovereignty. The continuous loops of the sun, wind, and water may seem mundane, but they remind us of a Creator who sustains all things with perfect order and consistency. We try to break the routine by doing something different or adventurous like fishing, but instead of trying to take a break from the grind and loop, we should embrace it. We can’t change the loop, we can only reach beyond it. Each day, each cycle gives us new opportunities to glorify God. We have the opportunity to learn from the mistakes of yesterday and make them right today. When we only focus on our little world and the inner circle spinning around us, we miss the cycle beyond it. Just as Earth spins consistently where it is, there is a universe with planets billions of miles away that all rotate with the same consistent and continuous loop around the sun. Each planet is perfectly placed at an exact distance and in perfect rotation to sustain the universe. Each moon around each planet has a specific purpose according to God’s design. The tides we like to fish and the game we like to hunt are affected by the moon.

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Look at Earth. What would happen if we were a few inches closer or further from the sun? What if the rotation slowed or changed direction? The light we receive in the darkness is due to a continuous, consistent cycle of the moon, which reflects the sun’s light.  Our lives are meant to reflect God’s light onto the world. We can’t do that if we are not consistent with our actions and words. Sometimes, it requires doing the same thing at the same place so others can see that consistency.

 

Have you ever felt like you were stuck in a rut in life? Being stuck in a loop and being stuck in a rut are two different things. Have you ever been stuck in a rut in your car or truck? It's hard to get out. You can’t turn left or right. You go forward and backward a few inches or a few feet and if you aren’t careful you will dig the rut deeper and bottom out.  Sometimes the mud sucks your tires in so much you can’t move. Many people give up and resign their lives to being stuck in that spot for the rest of their lives. Don’t allow yourself to get stuck in the rut of life. The positive side of a consistent loop is constant motion forward. Many of us could avoid getting stuck and sucked down in the mud if we just keep moving. Getting stuck in a rut is where the devil gets us. He  helps us get in the rut by first telling us that our lives are just a boring merry-go-round that keeps going in circles. He fills our minds with lies, telling us the only way to break free is to jump off the life loop we are on break the consistency. The devil will tell you that successful people make their own path. (Not True. Successful people are successful because they are consistent and obedient to God's plan.) Satan draws us away from our community of men and isolates us. He then steers us to a path that leads to nowhere but a rut. Once we fall into the rut he has us trapped and starts filling our minds with lies, making us believe we will never amount to anything, that we’re losers, so why try to get out? You are just working to make someone else rich. God doesn't care about you, he says. Your wife doesn’t deserve you. And on and on.

 

Keep eternity in mind when you are going through life’s daily grind. Trust God’s purpose when you feel like your life is stuck in a loop. Stay in the loop and maintain a community of like-minded Christian men who can help keep you out of the rut and stay in the cycle of life. Take five minutes tonight or while driving home and reflect on a repetitive cycle in your life. Ask God to reveal His purpose within it. It might be the clerk at the gas station or Starbucks you see several mornings each week or your co-workers who are being impacted by you. They are being impacted by your words, attitude, and actions, and if they are consistent in glorifying God, it will cause others to notice and want to reach out.

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Remember, 10% of life is what happens to us, 90% is how we respond to it. Do we respond as believers with hope for the future and eternity, knowing it is only temporary, or do we respond as someone in despair who believes our situation is permanent?

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