Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places

"He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end." Ecclesiastes 3:11b

I love how Kathy accepts that the man's lack of love for her was God's protection, because he wasn't God's choice for her. How has God protected you in that way (with any situation, not just relationships)? Do we always accept His protection or do we sometimes wallow in the rejection? (I know I tend to be a wollower.)

"The book of Ecclesiastes was written as a warning, a flashing red light to two groups of people:
1. To those who do not know the Lord and are trying with things "under the sun" to fill up those places only God can fill.
2. To those who do know the Lord but lose that "first-love" passion and then, like Solomon, try to find their way out of the wilderness. They look for love in places that will leave them lost, discouraged, and empty-handed."

What are some ways that you (recently or far in the past) have tried to fill up the emptiness in your life?

"Life under the sun is sweet, and we are to enjoy God's gifts of beauty, food, and sex - but none of them was ever meant to be abused. None of them was ever meant to meet our deepest needs. Phillip Yancy writes:
'Ecclesiastes endures as a work of great literature and a book of great truth because it presents both sides of life on this planet: the promise of pleasures so alluring that we may devote our lives to their pursuit, and then the haunting realization that these pleasures ultimately do not satisfy. God's tantalizing world is too big for us. Made for another home, made for eternity, we finally realize that nothing this side of timeless Paradise will quiet the rumors of discontent.'"

"The word translated "vanity" or "meaningless" in Ecclesiastes 1:1-3 means "something passing swiftly away." What do you learn about these things according to Proverbs 31:30 and Matthew 6:19-21?"

"Read Ecclesiastes 1:4-11. What word pictures does Solomon use in verses 5-7 to describe the monotonous cylcle of life? What are his conclusions, according to verses 8-11? What are his emotions?"

According to the first verse in this blog, what does it mean to have "eternity in your heart?"

"Read 1 Kings 11:1-13.
A. Why did God tell the Israelites not to marry the women from the surrounding nations? ? (vv.1-2)
B. Describe everything you can about Solomon's disobedience. (vv2-3)
C. How is the heart of Solomon contrasted to the heart of his father, David? (vv4-6)
D. What did Solomon do for Chemosh and Molech, two detestable gods? What do you think motivated him to do this? (vv 7-8)
E. Find as many reasons as you can in verses 9-11 for God's heartbreak concerning Solomon.
F. What was going to be the consequences of Solomon's attitude and behavoir? How did God's love for David mitigate the consequence? (vv 11-13)"

Name a favorite romantic place - it can be a place to be with the one you love or a place to be with the One you love.