Shortly before Christmas my dear mother-in-law died after a short period of ill health. The Christmas season was a mix of precious family gatherings coupled with sadness that she is no longer with us. At her funeral service last week there was a lot of tears within our wee family circle but also a deep sense of gratitude that she played such a significant role in our lives.
These past few weeks have caused me to fall back on Scriptures that I have often passed over, occasionally wondered about, but have never really stopped long enough to give them due consideration.
Tucked away in the wisdom literature of the Old Testament, King Solomon writes,
“It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting…The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.”
(Ecclesiastes 7:2,4)
Has there every been a generation like ours so committed to avoiding life’s pain as described by Solomon? The modern world has done all it can to anaesthise itself against the raw realities of life. People live with a penchant for pleasure above everything else.
However, these ancient sentences from the Hebrew Scriptures reveal a different, more realistic, and healthier view of life…and death.
And so taking Solomon’s words to heart I asked myself two questions. Firstly,
What Do We Discover In The House Of Feasting?
➡️ We Encounter Carelessness
I spoke to someone recently who went to a friend’s party. On the whole everything went well until a big argument broke out towards the end of the evening. It turns out that tongues had been loosened with one or two drinks, ill advised words were spoken and some drama followed! Careless words are not uncommon in the house of feasting.
➡️ We Experience Emptiness
Spend any amount of time in the house of feasting and we realise that no amount of pleasure can ultimately satisfy the deepest desires of our hearts.
And so secondly,
What Lessons Do We Learn In The House Of Mourning?
➡️ We Gain a Proper Perspective on Life
I lived in Campbeltown in the early 1990s and built a friendship with one of the guys from the American Airbase situated at Machrihanish. We met every Tuesday morning at 6.30am to pray and discuss our walk with God. Occasionally when I preached I would find a little card on the pulpit with a quote on to encourage me. One that I kept for many years came from the 18th century pastor and and writer, Richard Baxter. It said, “I preach as never sure to preach again, and as a dying man to dying men.” I have always found this a sobering sentence to reflect upon. It echoes the words of the apostle Paul, "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil" (Ephesians 5:15).
The house of mourning teaches that…
Life is a precious gift. Therefore, live gratefully.
Life is incredibly fleeting. Therefore, live wisely.
➡️ We Develop Empathy With Others
The apostle Paul, again, offers the following advice, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:15). As we support the brokenhearted we become more empathetic to all they are going through. There is something wholesome about walking with God and with others through pain and suffering.
“The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning…” None of us would choose to visit this house because of the sadness and heartache we discover there. However, when life’s path leads us to this dwelling place we are taught truths that cannot be found in the house of pleasure. It simply has no resources to offer anything of substance to this conversation. A wise person's heart carries truths that have the potential to sharpen our focus on the importance of living wisely and loving others.
(Picture - The Isle of Arran)
