

Last year I really got into the self-help movement





It came off the back of reading “ The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People ”* and realising all the good things that it said.





I took on board what they said.





fitter, healthier, and more productive than any time previously. It was the year that I was going to be, andthan any time previously.





get up early. I was going to





exercise every day and be healthy. I was going to





utilise every productivity hack available and build the life I dreamed of. I was going to





I started off really well.





I was doing all of the above.





Tonsilitis. Then in early spring, I got





another sickness. And another. Then after that, I got. And





pain in my foot. Then after that, I started to develop a





moved from the job that I loved. Then after that, I was





developed a terrible virus that wiped out my energy for months. Then after that, I





church that I pastored was closed down. Then, due to my illnesses, the









sickness bug and spent that night and next day throwing up. The day I was diagnosed I got aand spent that night and next day throwing up.





No amount of positive thinking, productivity hacks or self-help made a difference.

What The Book of Proverbs Has To Say About The Self-help Movement

Now don’t get me wrong. A lot of what the self-help movement has to say is great stuff.





Exercising regularly? Yep, that’s great for you. ? Yep, that’s great for you.





Eating healthily? Yep, that’s also great. ? Yep, that’s also great.





Thinking positively? That’s really helpful. ? That’s really helpful.





Creating good habits in your life? Also really good. ? Also really good.





I appreciate a lot of what the self-help movement says.





(There is also a lot of rubbish in the self-help movement. Try telling starving people in the midst of a famine that if they want something badly enough, and ask “the universe” for it, that “the universe” will gift it to them.)





book of Proverbs in the Bible reads a lot like a self-help book. Thein the Bible reads a lot like a self-help book.





It is full of practical wisdom.





The book of Proverbs claims:





will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm” (Prov 1:33). “Whoever listens to me [wisdom], without fear of harm” (Prov 1:33).





holds success in store for the upright” (Prov 2:7). It states that God “” (Prov 2:7).





prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity” (Prov 3:1-2). It says that listening to wisdom “willmany years and bring you” (Prov 3:1-2).





In other words, Proverbs claims that by following wisdom you will receive health, wealth, and a long life.





The exact claims that the self-help movement make.









As mentioned earlier, the things that Proverbs and the self-help movement tell us to do are really good things. And indeed they are right.As mentioned earlier, the things that Proverbs and the self-help movement tell us to do are really good things.





They certainly make it more likely that we will receive good things (if that is what we want).





do this and you will have a good life”. We are told, “”.





things still go terribly wrong? But what happens when we follow this advice and





This is where Ecclesiastes comes in.

What Ecclesiastes Has To Say About The Self Help Movement

The book of Ecclesiastes is another book in the Bible and stands alongside Proverbs in the category of “ Wisdom Literature ”.





The opening words of Ecclesiastes speak volumes:





“Meaningless! Meaningless!... Everything is meaningless” (Ecc 1:2)





The teacher then goes on to say that with wisdom comes much sorrow, with more knowledge, comes more grief (Ecc 1:18).



This theme culminates in Ecclesiastes 9:11



“I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favour to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all.”



The book of Ecclesiastes stands in direct contrast to the wisdom offered in Proverbs.





It stands as a counterbalance.





do these things and you will have a good life”, Ecclesiastes says “but there are no guarantees, nothing is certain.” When Proverbs claims “”, Ecclesiastes says “

Conclusion

The self-help movement needs an Ecclesiastes.





all the healthy eating, exercise, productivity and positive thinking doesn’t necessarily lead to a better life. It needs something that clearly states that





that’s life. It needs something that says that you can do all these things and still have everything go wrong, and





everything we have is a gift. It is the gratitude of what is in our hands at that moment, and our relationship with God that makes a life worth living. The wisdom of Ecclesiastes is to acknowledge that. It is the gratitude of what is in our hands at that moment, and our relationship with God that makes a life worth living.





May we acknowledge the dual wisdom of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. May we learn to hold both of them with open hands. And may walk with grateful hearts into whatever the future holds.



