top of page

Finding a sense of peace

Bailey Krall

"What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? All things are wearisome, more than one can say.” - Ecclesiastes 1:3,8.

We were on a high school music tour, and I had just been casually chatting with a new friend when our conversation turned from fluff to real talk. She started opening up about the struggles of living so far from her family in South Korea, the pressure she lives with to do well and the depression she faces on a daily basis. After a while, we both sat there in silence. My heart was heavy, and so was hers. Life seemed unbearably difficult. All I could do was empathize.

There was nothing I could do to make her situation better, and I felt incredibly helpless. I felt the weight of all the tragedy and heartache in this world on my shoulders. How should I respond?

Suddenly, I was reminded of the book of Ecclesiastes. King Solomon himself went through a period of depression as he sought to determine the meaning of life. As my friend and I read the words of Solomon, we felt ourselves relating to his search for meaning. As we read, we discovered that just knowing that someone else in the Bible had gone through a similar experience gave us a sense of peace.

Finally, we came across Solomon’s conclusion: “What do workers gain from their toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him,” Ecclesiastes 3:9-14.

My friend shared how reading the Bible was something that she found difficult to do and that she didn’t realize how much of it was actually relevant and relatable. It was incredible to see how just a few words of scripture totally changed things for both of us. Those words revitalized us and helped us to find beauty in the world again.

A relationship with God and time spent in His Word is truly the only way to find meaning and beauty in the sin-struck world we live in. If you don’t already, I challenge you to give the Bible a try. Get to know God for yourself.

I think you will be surprised at how much you will find that resonates with you. God cares for you and understands what you’re going through more than anyone else.

I especially love this Bible verse: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin,” Hebrews 4:15.

17 views0 comments
bottom of page