A wise man in the Bible once observed: “I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.” (Ecclesiastes 1:14)

Everyone is searching for meaning in life…

Viktor Frankl, an Austrian neurologist, psychiatrist, philosopher, and Holocaust survivor once observed, “that people have enough to live by but nothing to live for; they have the means but no meaning.”

Many people today feel exactly this way. We live in one of the most prosperous places on the planet with a higher standard of living and wealth than the majority of the world’s population, yet many still feel like their life lacks purpose. We live as if life’s goal is – the one who dies with the most toys wins. Shows like MTV Cribs display to us images of ‘the good life’ – the best houses and possessions this life has to offer. But if money brings happiness, why is it that so many of the most famous, beautiful, rich and powerful people still struggle with intense depression and meaninglessness?

So, we must honestly ask:

• Is there more to life than material prosperity, luxury and wealth?
• Why is it that these things fail to satisfy our soul’s deepest yearnings?
• Why do we always feel like time is running away on us?
• Where is hope to be found if not in the things of this world?
• Can we rightly enjoy the good things of this life?

We’ll be considering these questions and more in this first session of this workshop series.

How do we make sense of the problem of pain and suffering in life?

Many people honestly wrestle with the problem of pain and suffering in our world. We look around and see the devastation of disease, injustice, violence, and oppression and we wonder “how could a good God allow such things?” We seek to make sense out of the suffering and look for hope beyond it. We have a need to look for meaning and purpose in the midst of our suffering…

Nobel prize-winning author, C.S. Lewis once wrote:

“We can ignore even pleasure. But pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

We must honestly consider:

• Do suffering and evil disprove God’s existence?
• Where is God in suffering and pain?
• What hope is there for us if we can’t find lasting meaning in these things?

We’ll be considering these questions and more in this second session of this workshop series.

“No man has power to retain the spirit, or power over the day of death…” (Ecclesiastes 8:8)

We are all going to die.

This is not a statement of alarm or panic or morbid fascination, but rather just a true statement of reality and what happens to all of us eventually. Our bodies grow weak and frail, old age gets the better of us and our journey here in this life will eventually come to an end. This is also true for people of any age – for life can sometimes be unpredictable and the young and old may die unexpectedly.

Woody Allen once humorously said,

“I am not afraid of death, I just don’t want to be there when it happens.”

For some of us, we can’t stand the thought of our lives being terminated. We want to live forever. But death and the grave are realities we cannot put off forever and it is unwise to not prepare for what we are certain is coming. We must honestly consider:

• Why is facing death so hard? It doesn’t feel like this was the way things were meant to be…
• What hope does the Bible give us for facing death?
• Is there a way to prepare ourselves to die well?

We’ll be considering these questions and more in this last session of this workshop series.