Ecclesiastes 10:10 is one of my favorite Scriptures.
If the ax is dull and the edge unsharpened,
more strength is needed,
but skill will bring success. (NIV)
I love the passion of this view of life. No victim mentality Bible reader will make this their theme verse! This is an, "I will win," attitude.
If my tools are dull, then I can overcome with more strength, greater effort and time. If my tools are dull, I will sharpen them. I can increase my effectiveness by working to be sharper and more efficient with my limited strength and time.
Finally, when my strength and effincey are not enough, I need skill. The same word Solomon used in this verse, is the word he used in Proverbs 1:7, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom..." When my strength is all used up, and my resources completely spent, I know that God's wisdom and ability will step in to help me be successful at accomplishing his will.
The starting point for this wisdom and skill is the respect of God.
Respect of God will develop a true perspective.
Respect of God will eliminate a victim mentality.
Respect of God will create the work ethic to sharpen and swing hard.
Respect of God will bring success.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Virtual Reality
We live in a world filled with virtual perceptions of reality. Often the image driven culture creates an world that is not really there. One of the greatest images our culture distorts is the image of death.
Ecclesiastes 7:1-2 says,
"A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of death better than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart." (NIV)
Think about what our image driven culture says. "Death is bad, dark, scary, and there is nothing good about it." Then we also tend to say, "Birth is joyful and happy, the future is bright and do birthdays are happy days." The Bible says the opposite! How can the Bible say, "...the day of death is better than the day of birth." Why?
Look at the words around this reality check. "A good name is better than perfume." A good name is not given at birth, it is earned by a reputation of being good. So the day of death is better than the day of birth because at birth nothing has been willingly or consciously accomplished. But at death we have the opportunity to celebrate a life well lived. At death we can look at an entire life and rejoice in its courage, service, honesty, labor, success, friendships, and family.
In that regard it is better to go to the funeral home than the party. As a kid I went to scores of funerals. We lived close to all the extended family and had huge family reunions and huge funerals. Some parents disagree, but I was glad for the reality check of funerals. I understood death. Grandma did not just disappear, I saw her funeral. Burying my loved ones was not an imaginary concept, it was real. Today when I attend a funeral, I always think about my life and living it so that my day of death is better than my day of birth.
How can you make the day of your death the best day possible? Live life for Jesus Christ. Let him do his redeeming work in you. Allow his word to make your life abundantly blessed as you obey his plans. My job is to live my life for the greatest glory to God for the greatest amount of time. Then, I and all my friends will be rejoicing. Some friends rejoicing on earth. Some rejoicing with me and Jesus in Heaven.
Ecclesiastes 7:1-2 says,
"A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of death better than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart." (NIV)
Think about what our image driven culture says. "Death is bad, dark, scary, and there is nothing good about it." Then we also tend to say, "Birth is joyful and happy, the future is bright and do birthdays are happy days." The Bible says the opposite! How can the Bible say, "...the day of death is better than the day of birth." Why?
Look at the words around this reality check. "A good name is better than perfume." A good name is not given at birth, it is earned by a reputation of being good. So the day of death is better than the day of birth because at birth nothing has been willingly or consciously accomplished. But at death we have the opportunity to celebrate a life well lived. At death we can look at an entire life and rejoice in its courage, service, honesty, labor, success, friendships, and family.
In that regard it is better to go to the funeral home than the party. As a kid I went to scores of funerals. We lived close to all the extended family and had huge family reunions and huge funerals. Some parents disagree, but I was glad for the reality check of funerals. I understood death. Grandma did not just disappear, I saw her funeral. Burying my loved ones was not an imaginary concept, it was real. Today when I attend a funeral, I always think about my life and living it so that my day of death is better than my day of birth.
How can you make the day of your death the best day possible? Live life for Jesus Christ. Let him do his redeeming work in you. Allow his word to make your life abundantly blessed as you obey his plans. My job is to live my life for the greatest glory to God for the greatest amount of time. Then, I and all my friends will be rejoicing. Some friends rejoicing on earth. Some rejoicing with me and Jesus in Heaven.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
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.
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