“If the ax is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed, but skill will bring success.” (Ecl 10:10 NIV)
Wow, is that packed with wisdom? Let’s dig in.
Basically, Solomon is saying that if the axe is not sharpened it requires more strength to get the job done. Simple, right? But if you’re smart, you’ll sharpen the darn axe. It’s just way easier to cut wood if the axe is sharp.
Abe Lincoln said if someone gave me 6 hours to cut down a tree I would spend the first 4 hours sharpening the axe.
The point, evidently, we can all lose our edge making everything we do more difficult. Sometimes we need to re-group. Get back in the Word, back in fellowship with believers, get back with Jesus and sharpen ourselves. We need to get our edge back.
It’s much more difficult to do God’s work without our edge.
And that’s the memo.
Steve