Groundhog Day, one of my favorite movies, is a comedy featuring Phil Connors, a self-centered, arrogant TV weatherman. After being forced to take on a much-hated assignment—covering the annual Groundhog Day event in Punxsutawney—he suddenly finds himself caught in a time loop, repeating the same day over and over again. At first, he pursues every hedonistic escape he can think of. But eventually he begins to reevaluate his priorities, to better himself, and to think of others’ needs.

Thousands of years earlier, Solomon had carefully observed the circular repetition of human activity. The sun rises, you wake up, have breakfast, send the kids to school, and then off to work you go. Many hours later, you leave the office and come home. And you repeat the same routine over and over again. For some people, this routine couldn’t be more mundanely repetitive and monotonous. The endless cycle never produces anything “truly new” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). In frustration, Solomon concludes: “Everything is meaningless, completely meaningless” (v.2).

Like Phil Connors, we need to reexamine our life and priorities. Instead of seeing himself as a prisoner of life’s repetitive cycles, Connors began to use his knowledge of how the day would unfold to help people. Knowing that a child would fall from a tree at a certain time, he made it a point to be there and catch the child every time. He befriended a dying, homeless man. In helping others, he found meaning and purpose in life.

We too can find purpose and meaning in life. Who is one person we can help today? Solomon advises “I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live” (Ecclesiastes 3:12 NIV). Life may be monotonous at times. But it is never without purpose or meaning.