Sharpen Your Tools
If the iron is blunt, and one does not whet the edge, then more strength must be exerted; but wisdom helps one to succeed. - Ecclesiastes 10:10
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A Sharp Cut
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My father was a finish carpenter by trade, and a good one. One of the reasons he was so successful is that he kept his cutting tools sharp. As children we were never allowed to use his tools for any purpose. They were his livelihood. He had to depend on them to serve his purpose.
He did keep some old tools for the family to use. He also kept them sharp. In fact, he taught me how to sharpen them. The quote from Ecclesiastes above gives the main reason why they must be sharp. It requires too much exertion to work with dull tools. Also a dull knife or axe is much more dangerous than a sharp one. Dullness makes the knife or axe slip from its intended target. Even a dull tool will cut human flesh. Therefore it might as well be sharp.
Surely the writer of Ecclesiastes had more in mind than physical tools. Wisdom literature is meant to apply to the living of our lives. For example, our minds must be kept sharp. If we blunder through a job, simply trying things at random, we will not get much accomplished. We need to learn the basics of completing a task. Then as we practice, we sharpen our skills, and learn to master the job at hand. More generally we keep our minds sharp by using them. An unexercised mind is like an unused muscle. It soon becomes weak and atrifies.
Obviously, our physical skills must also be kept sharp. They are kept sharp by constant practice. That's why golfers take practice swings and baseball players have batting practice. Not only does constant practice keep the muscles in tone, but the brain in conjunction with the muscles has to make the necessary movements automatic. Even singers have to warm up. Musicians spend a great deal of time in practice.
Since the whole body is made up of the physical, the mental, and the spiritual, we must not neglect the exercise of our spiritual beings. There are many tools available for doing this. These include such things as meditation, prayer, study, and quiet reflection. If our physical, mental, and spiritual tools are kept sharp, living becomes much easier. If not, life becomes very difficult. On the other hand, dullness will cause us to veer off course and we tend to lose our way. As the writer says, "Wisdom helps one to succeed."
- The Old Professor
Copyright © Jay D Weaver - July 15, 2008
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