Smarter, Not Harder

Early yesterday morning I picked up my chainsaw and began cutting a very large hickory stump that stuck up in the middle of my lawn. After mowing around it for twenty years, I decided it had to be taken to the ground. It didn’t take me long to discover that the stump was very hard and my chain was very dull. Sweat was pouring from my red face to the ground, so that it was hard to even see well. Wisdom told me that it would be better to sharpen the chain three times, rather than break my back by trying to save time and cut with a dull saw.

How many times have we tried to overcome a spiritual problem in our lives the same old dull way? Though it never worked well for us, we keep trying the same old way…hoping for different results.

What do we call it if someone keeps on flipping the switch when a light does not come on, hoping maybe the next flip will make it work? We call that crazy, right? Wisdom would cause that person to try something else. In my reading through Ecclesiastes, I came on this verse with some very practical advice.

“If your ax is dull and you don't sharpen it, you have to work harder to use it.

It is smarter to plan ahead.”

Ecclesiastes 10:10  GNB

I would jump off the haymow of a barn to the floor without climbing the ladder, because it was quicker. Granted the landing was a fairly hard jolt on my feet and back, but it saved me the time it took to take the ladder. One day my dad saw me jump and told me, “you may save some time right now, but you could very well pay for it with back and joint problems for the rest of your life.”  How wise dad was. It pays to plan ahead and not just live our lives for the immediate pleasure of the moment.

A good gardener would know to keep his shovels and hoes sharpened. Working with a dull hoe would amount to pounding weeds rather than slicing through them, and a blunt spade will stop at roots and hard soil, whereas a sharp one will cut right through them.

Are we walking around with dull axes?  Are we less effective than we used to be? Are we simply going through the motions of serving God because of being near burnout and total exhaustion? That is not the way God intends for us to live. Of course, there are times when more work is required, more energy is spent, and you will be tired. How do we avoid this rut? Is it possible to have a great marriage, a strong sense of purpose, a successful job, a ministry that pleases God, and still enjoy life? I believe we can. The secret is found in keeping a sharp ax.
That is exactly what needs to be done with our relationships with God and people. It is far more effective to invest time and effort into these relationships before we feel the need for any help; rather than expecting our friends and family members to help us at a moments notice when they haven’t heard from us for a very long time! Sound familiar anyone? How many of you know it is harder to restore a broken relationship than it is to maintain one. I believe one of the keys to keeping our spiritual axes sharpened is by reading God’s Word.

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword…”  (Hebrews 4:12)

So, let’s work smarter…not harder, by daily reading God’s Word. Life will not be dull when we are sharpened by the word of God.
Al Yoder

Blessed By Vision

Proverbs 29:18

Butch, a brother in our church family recently had a knee replacement surgery. He said it would have been so much more difficult if he did not have a church family loving and caring alongside his physical family. He said “having people lovingly praying for me, helped me trust God with whatever He did with me” He had a vision of what Christ’s purpose was for the church. Pastors have the responsibility to impart the vision Christ has given for His church. God has a plan and purpose for us as a body of believers, a vision. We are fulfilling the will of God when we actively participate in the local church body.

“Where there is no vision, the people perish; but he who keeps the law, he is blessed.”

Proverbs 29:18

In the past 53 years, I have watched many people come and go from church, and the majority left because they had no vision or a very small one at best. God's highest purpose for us is much more than to fill a pew every time the church doors are open. His plan for our life involves more than just attending church and listening attentively to someone preach a good sermon. God wants us to be actively involved in the church.

The church isn't a building or facility; it is not the walls, chairs and carpet. It is not an organization to better our society, though it will do that.  The church is much more than that. She is a living organism, called a Body in the Bible. It is made up of people who are born again, growing and maturing into the image of Jesus Christ. When there is a project to be done, we ask the question “who is heading this up?” We want to know who has the authority to get the job done. Christ is the only head of the church. The church represents Christ on the earth continuing the ministry Jesus began 2000 years ago.  (Eph.4:11-13, Rom.8:29, Acts 1:1)

 Proverbs 29:18 says that without a vision, people perish. The Hebrew word for vision used in this passage is "chazown" and it means sight, or vision. So, according to our text, God wants us to see something. God wants to reveal His will to us. The church does not gather to escape the fires of hell, but to find out what God wants us to be doing in our world. The text verse says without sight or vision, people perish. The Hebrew word is "para" and it means to loosen or dismiss.

The Living Bible:"Where there is ignorance of God, the people run wild"
New American Standard:"Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained"
New International Version:"Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint"

Soren Kierkegaard told a story about a wounded goose who landed in a barnyard with some chickens. He played and ate with the chickens. After a while that goose thought he was a chicken. One day some geese flew over the barnyard migrating to a warmer climate. They honked as they flew overhead, and the goose heard them. Suddenly something stirred within his breast. Something called him to the skies. He began to flap the wings he hadn’t used, and rose a few feet into the air. Then he stopped and settled back again into the mud of the barnyard. “He heard the cry, but he settled for less."

If we hear God’s vision, why settle for less?   Proverbs 29:18 ends by saying “blessed” or happy are those who do these things. So, go ahead…flap those wings and get blessed by God’s vision.

Al Yoder

Free Indeed

Many Americans don’t know what Independence Day really means. What we celebrate is the day we were set free from the dominance of the country of England in 1776.  That was the time we were set free as a people to worship God as we understood Him. We no longer needed to be in bondage to a foreign government to take away our income with heavy taxes and our freedom to worship as we pleased. 

One evening Rose and I hosted a young man for supper. As we visited together about his work and his children, he responded that it was a positive time for him. We then asked how his relationship was with his wife, to which he responded “very difficult!”  We tried to be helpful to him, but suddenly we discovered that we were not doing well in our own communication with each other.  The harder we tried to rectify the problem with words, the less we understood each other. It was discouraging to know that we might have caused this young man’s evening to be ruined. After he left, Rose and I tried again to talk about what had happened to the two of us, only to still feel like there was a breach in our spirits. It was at that point that God spoke to me saying, “Why don’t you ask me for help with this challenge?” I felt rebuked for not thinking about asking Him sooner. The moment we finished praying, there was a huge change. It was as though we had been set free of the invisible bars that had kept us from understanding each other.  It is a wonderful experience to live in a free country, but it is even more powerful to be set free from the spiritual warfare that hinders our oneness with each other and with our God.

“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed”

John 8:36

Harry Houdini, the famed escape artist issued a challenge wherever he went. He could be locked in any jail cell in the country, he claimed, and set himself free quickly and easily. Always he kept his promise, but one time something went wrong. Houdini entered the jail in his street clothes; the heavy, metal doors clanged shut behind him. He took from his belt a concealed piece of metal, strong and flexible. He set to work immediately, but something seemed to be unusual about this lock. For 30 minutes he worked and got nowhere. An hour passed, and still he had not opened the door. By now he was bathed in sweat and panting in exasperation, but he still could not pick the lock. Finally, after laboring for two hours, Harry Houdini collapsed in frustration and failure against the door he could not unlock, and it swung open! The door had not been locked, but in his mind it was locked. All he really had to do was lean against the handle and walk out of the jail cell. 

We, like Houdini, sweat and get frustrated by our sincere attempts at overcoming a difficult situation in our life. Then when we get to the “end of our rope”, we cry out to God and Jesus sets us free, and we are free indeed!

Al Yoder

7/4/2011