The Search for Meaning
At the end of Session 1, I asked you where you might be relying on knowledge or success instead of God. Perhaps you realised how easy it is to chase after things that look wise, but don’t satisfy.
Today, Solomon helps us face another reality: even the best of life can feel like vapour or mist.
Let me ask you a question.
Have you ever reached a goal you thought would finally satisfy you… only to find yourself strangely empty?
Maybe it was a promotion, or finishing a degree, or buying that house. For a moment it felt great — and then came the question: “Is this it?”
King Solomon knew that feeling. He had wealth, power, projects, pleasure, and wisdom greater than anyone else. And yet, when he looked back, his haunting conclusion in Ecclesiastes was this: “Meaningless, meaningless… everything is meaningless.” He uses that word 38 times the book.
What Does “Meaningless” Really Mean? Please pardon the pun!
I’ll say it again. What does meaningless mean?
Now here’s something fascinating. That word “meaningless” is how many English Bibles translate the Hebrew word hebel (הֶבֶל). But hebel doesn’t just mean meaningless. It literally means vapour… breath… smoke.
Picture the steam rising from your morning cup of tea, or your breath on a cold winter’s day. You can see it for a moment — but then it’s gone. You can’t grab it. You can’t hold onto it.
That’s the image Ecclesiastes gives us: life is fleeting, temporary, hard to grasp. You can pour yourself into projects, pleasure, possessions — but in the end, it’s like trying to catch smoke in your hands.
The Pursuit of “Under the Sun” Living
That’s why Solomon calls his achievements “a chasing after the wind.” No matter how much you build, collect, or enjoy, you can’t stop time. You can’t escape death. And in the face of those realities, everything we cling to is like vapour.
In my book Dancing With Wisdom, I talk about how true wisdom faces reality honestly. Ecclesiastes refuses to let us pretend. It tells the truth: life “under the sun,” apart from God, is fragile and fleeting.
But God Has Placed Eternity in Our Hearts
And yet, Ecclesiastes gives us a clue: “God has set eternity in the human heart.” Even while life feels like vapour, there’s something inside us that longs for permanence. We ache for more than the temporary.
We want love that lasts. We want meaning that doesn’t fade away like smoke.
Amazingly, in Christ Eternity Breaks through into our temporary world.
And here’s the good news: Jesus steps into our vapour-like existence. He lived under the same sun. He knew toil, sorrow, and even death. But through His resurrection, He broke the power of death and gave us hope that goes beyond the grave.
What Solomon could only describe as longing, Christ fulfils. He turns “vapour” into victory. In Him, even the smallest act of love and faithfulness carries eternal weight.
So, as you reflect on what you’ve heard, let me ask you: where are you chasing after vapour in your life? In work? In possessions? In recognition?
What would it look like for you to live this week not just for what fades, but with eternity written on your heart?
Ecclesiastes tells us that life without God is like smoke — here one moment, gone the next. But with Christ, even the fleeting becomes eternal. The question is not, “Is this it?” The real question is, “How can I live today in light of forever?”
Discussion Questions
1. Where do you sense yourself chasing after 'vapour' — things that quickly fade?
2. How does the picture of life as Hebel (smoke, breath) make you think differently about your time and priorities?
3. What would living with 'eternity in your heart' look like this week?
