Virtual Reality

This week I have been rediscovering how much I love Ecclesiastes, the Old Testament book of Wisdom.  What resonates with me most is the hard hitting reality of the book.  I am a very optimistic and idealistic type of person who is thrilled by adventure and the opportunities of life.  At the same time, I am very down to earth.  I despise pretense and the impracticality of a facade.

For me, living in our virtual world is like a nightmare!  Last week I saw an advertisement on an internet website I was reading from.  It directed me to the Social Security Administrations site where you can sign up for disability benefits.  I was shocked!  I’ll say it again, I was shocked!  It looked like a web site for Edward Jones, Shelter Insurance, or a financial service group.  There were banners and pictures of happy, quite well dressed, wonderfully healthy people.  That is the virtual reality they create.  The actual reality that I see people dealing with is different.  Going on disability is very difficult, no one does it because of good health, and by the time the process is approved some are in extreme financial difficulty that can never be recovered from with limited benefits.  That is the reality of life.  What makes me frustrated is when an image is portrayed that is so far from reality.

What I love about Ecclesiastes is the extremely honest nature of the book.  There is no fake mask on the truth of God’s word in this wisdom book.  This week we will look at some of these truths.