I don't know who first coined the phrase I used in the title, but the longer I live the more certain I am of its truth. Here's how I would paraphrase it. There is no circumstance or state of being attainable in the human existence that produces lasting happiness and fulfillment. No matter how sweet the momentary sense of accomplishment may be at the realization of a goal, it is always displaced by the need for a new goal. What one may think will be the ultimate arrival point always turns out to be illusory and unsatisfying.
Like everyone, I've dreamed dreams that did not come to pass (yet). I've also had the experience of dreaming dreams that became reality. It is one thing to have one's sights set upon a lofty goal that is never realized. It is quite another to get to some dreamed of destination only to discover it didn't offer any of the magical happiness you thought it would.
The writer of Ecclesiastes understood this very well and wrote, "I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun." Ecclesiastes 2:10-11.
I'm guessing that the current economic crisis is driving home the truth of those words to many. Some have fallen victim to suicidal despair as they see the fruit of their life's work vanish in the wind. Chasing after wealth and the consumerism that define so much of our culture have once again been shown to be what they are. What the teacher told us centuries ago, "that all labor and all achievement spring from man's envy of his neighbor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind" (Ecclesiastes 4:4). I wonder if we'll learn the lesson?
I gave up making new year resolutions decades ago, but I am hoping to bring a mindset into sharper focus in the coming year. To paraphrase St. Paul, life isn't about happiness it is about contentment. And contentment has nothing to do with circumstances (Philippians 4:11-13). Rather, it is rooted in how we partner with God in life. The teacher of Ecclesiastes put it this way, "A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This, too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can find enjoyment?" Ecclesiastes 2:24-25.
Reducing life to such a simple formula will require me to throttle way back and live life with far less complexity. Always striving for bigger, better and more is chasing the mirage.
