Spitting into the Wind

And they say,
'You don't tug on Superman's cape
You don't spit into the wind
You don't pull the mask off the old Lone Ranger
And you don't mess around with Jim'

If you listened to any music at all in the '70s you had to hear this song by Jim Croce. Jim must have been one tough character. He was equated with Superman and the Lone Ranger and to mess with them wasn't very smart. Neither was messing with Jim I understand. But what always got me about this chorus was the phrase, "you don't spit into the wind."

Ever tried that? I remember as a kid we'd spit with the wind. It was fun to see just how far it could go. (I know it sounds gross, but I said I was a kid. I rarely do that anymore!) I don't ever remember intentionally spitting into the wind. Maybe accidentally. And I know that it isn't very smart.

It's that tidbit of wisdom in the chorus that echos the very words of Solomon (the Preacher/writer of Ecclesiastes) that life is just spitting into the wind. Not a very encouraging word is it? Neither was Solomon encouraged by what he had seen and experienced in life. He had it all, riches, wisdom, God's favor, women, fame, power, and he called it all smoke, meaningless.

It's hard to imagine just how life might be as Solomon. It's a part of the American Dream in a sense, to have pursued happiness and achieved what most everybody else would say is the absolute highest level. And while all of this brought much pleasure to Solomon's life none of it brought him the most important thing, satisfaction or more correctly, peace. He thought he had everything, but he lacked one thing and it made all the difference.

It's what he was striving after and what we look for. We'll try in countless ways to achieve it, yet continue to find it elusive. That's because peace isn't found in any thing. It is only found in God.

Let me say that it is not wrong to feel like Solomon, it's just sad. Because it doesn't have to be that way. (As you read the rest of the Book of Ecclesiastes you'll discover how his life is resolved.) Life may seem like spitting into the wind (Eccl. 1:17) but it's really a journey on which we find life's meaning. The key to a satisfying life (of peace) is not just journeying toward God, or under the banner of God, but with God. It's a complete change of direction, 180 degrees. And it makes all the difference when you spit.

With God, you get to see just how far it goes instead of having it hit you in the face!

Peace ><>
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