Rushing Into Trouble
Also, that the soul be without knowledge, it is not good; and he that hasteth with his feet sinneth.
Proverbs 19:2
My father often cautioned me against getting in a hurry to complete a task. Perhaps the best lesson I ever learned from him regarding patience occurred one day while we were installing a new barbed-wire fence. My father was supposed to be handicapped - he only had one hand with limited range of motion and a "L" shaped nub where his right hand should be due to an accident as a toddler. However, on this day, he was beating me at nailing the wire to wood posts using fence staples. With five strands per post, he was completing his post faster than I could manage. No matter how fast I nailed, he beat me to the next post! I could not conceive nor concede that he could be faster nailing staples than a healthy, stubborn teenager!
Finally, in frustration (and exhaustion) I asked him why he was able to beat me. He simply smiled and said, "Slow and steady wins the race." After I calmed down, he explained that I need to be slow, deliberate and make every blow of the hammer count. Uncontrolled flailing resulted in ricocheted staples and missed blows. It took more energy and time than nailing in a controlled and deliberate manner.
Isn't the same true with our personal life? When we get impatient and rush head-long into activities without waiting for guidance from God nor thinking through the consequence of our actions, we end up in a mess. Then we cry out to Jesus to fix our mess that we have gotten ourselves into, again! We need to heed Solomon and ensure that our heart is filled with the knowledge of God before we rush into trouble.
Proverbs 19:2
My father often cautioned me against getting in a hurry to complete a task. Perhaps the best lesson I ever learned from him regarding patience occurred one day while we were installing a new barbed-wire fence. My father was supposed to be handicapped - he only had one hand with limited range of motion and a "L" shaped nub where his right hand should be due to an accident as a toddler. However, on this day, he was beating me at nailing the wire to wood posts using fence staples. With five strands per post, he was completing his post faster than I could manage. No matter how fast I nailed, he beat me to the next post! I could not conceive nor concede that he could be faster nailing staples than a healthy, stubborn teenager!
Finally, in frustration (and exhaustion) I asked him why he was able to beat me. He simply smiled and said, "Slow and steady wins the race." After I calmed down, he explained that I need to be slow, deliberate and make every blow of the hammer count. Uncontrolled flailing resulted in ricocheted staples and missed blows. It took more energy and time than nailing in a controlled and deliberate manner.
Isn't the same true with our personal life? When we get impatient and rush head-long into activities without waiting for guidance from God nor thinking through the consequence of our actions, we end up in a mess. Then we cry out to Jesus to fix our mess that we have gotten ourselves into, again! We need to heed Solomon and ensure that our heart is filled with the knowledge of God before we rush into trouble.
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