Hard work is often the result of laziness or lack of wisdom!

Ecclesiastes 10:10 says, “If the ax is dull, And one does not sharpen the edge, Then he must use more strength; But wisdom brings success.”

Time spent caring for “the ax” is time well spent. The ax, in this metaphor, is you.

I am persuaded that the best gift you can give to God, your family, your employer, your friends, etc. is a healthy self, and that takes time!

• Physical health requires rest, good diet, and exercise! Each of these require an investment of time, but the return on investment is a better you!

• Spiritual health requires prayer, interaction with the Scriptures, community, and a commitment to the various spiritual disciplines (e.g. giving, service, etc.). All of this takes time but the return on investment is a better you!

• Intellectual health requires reading, listening, and thinking. Each of these requires an investment of time, but the return on the investment is a better you!

• Emotional health requires rest, forgiveness, love, etc. Each of these, again, requires an investment of time, but the return on investment is a better you!

• Relational health requires time spent with friends, energy and time invested in working through misunderstandings, etc. These things require an investment of time, but the return on investment is… you know it by now…

You can move through life working hard, breaking a sweat, laboring intensively and never taking time to stop and sharpen the ax.

Or you can break from the busyness to care for the ax (yourself) and see the wisdom of that decision reflected in an improvement in every area of your life!

Think about it…

Check out this short story.