WATCHWORD SEPTEMBER 2026
“Better is a handful with quiet than two handfuls with toil and a chasing after wind.”
Ecclesiastes 4,6
Dear congregation,
A truth, a piece of wisdom that packs a punch – yet is actually so self-evident that we hear it, nod in agreement, and then carry on all the same, ‘with both fists full of toil and chasing the wind’. After all, who can really afford to ‘rest’, and with just a ‘handful’ at that – what is the other hand supposed to do then?
Our Western culture is shaped by the ideology that ‘more is better’ and ‘as much as possible of everything, and right now!’. This stimulates ‘growth’, the ‘economy’, ‘business’ and ‘productivity’ – and we fail to realise that it is destroying us and our world. Even as a church, our constant focus on the figures (money and members), our constant concern for the ‘future of the church’ – with which we rouse one another and put each other under pressure – will get us nowhere; on the contrary, it paralyses our strength and destroys our joy in the grace from which we claim to live.
Anyone who thinks they have control over their own life or the life of a church will destroy it. Our sole task is to celebrate, proclaim and joyfully live out the good news that God holds our lives, the life of the church and the whole world in his hands. This attitude towards life and work will also have a positive impact on the global economy, which is currently being destroyed precisely by fearmongering and concerns about growth; indeed, we can already see the ecological consequences of this ideology of growth clearly here in South Africa. The far too dry winter and the water crisis looming ahead are warning signs that we should not ignore. The high number of overworked staff in our congregations should also make us mindful of the language we use when we talk about the Church and the congregation. Are we not driving ourselves to this weariness when we are constantly worrying? If we simply fulfil our duty faithfully – to assure one another of God’s grace and to live in that grace – God will fulfil His promises. It is all in His hands.
So, let us be courageous and, with just ‘a handful’, experience peace from time to time and offer it to others as well. This, too, is a gift of God’s grace, which we may then receive with both our empty hands.
Kind regards, Felix Meylahn
