“Whoever digs a pit may fall into it; whoever breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake. Whoever quarries stones may be injured by them; whoever slits logs may be endangered by them.”
“c’est la vie” is French for that’s life. My wife and I were on our way to Colorado to visit our daughter and her husband. We were so excited to see them. While driving on I-25, a huge rock from the other side of the freeway came out of nowhere and hit our windshield. With a huge crashing sound, we both were startled. A huge crack grew from the impact sight and soon made its way all the way across the windshield.
Well, that’s life! The older I get the more I seem to understand this verse. It reminds us what the Bible says in Matthew 5:45, ” He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” Some people believe that the Christian life is all sunshine and rainbows and have decided to ignore this verse.
When you sign up to be in the military, you know what you are getting into; you may lose your life in service for this county. When you get hired to be a president or a high official of a company, you had better understand that 8 to 5 may not apply to you. Or when you open and run your own business, you get to understand that the business may be running you instead of the other way around. Why then do we as Christians seem to ignore that life will not happen to us as well as the ungodly or unchurched?
Understanding that we as Christians face the same life struggles as everyone else we should look at verse 10. “If the ax is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed, but skill will bring success.” God is calling us to sharpen our spiritual ax. But not only that, he is also telling us that using a dull ax uses more strength. In other words, walking the Christian walk is more difficult if you do not know the Word of God.
Solomon helps us understand that life will happen to all of us. Weeds still seem to grow in the garden no matter how many times you pull them. We have to keep pulling those weeds out of the garden every week just like we need to keep sharpening our axes in the Word of God. Verse 18 says, “Through laziness, the rafters sag; because of idle hands, the house leaks.” Keep guard against laziness of all kinds because it will begin to destroy the very place you are living in.
Now for a fun verse I found in the same chapter. Verse 19. “A feast is made for laughter, wine makes life merry, and money is the answer for everything.” If I did know any better I would think this came from a rock song back in the 80’s. Sometimes you have to laugh at life and remember that God is in control and that He watches over the paths of the righteous.
Life happens to all of us. We should not be surprised when we go through hard times. When Paul pleaded with God to take away his “thorn in his side” God tells Paul that “my grace is sufficient”. Your hard times may be the very thing God uses to help someone down the road. While you are experiencing “life” fall back on the grace of God. God may be fashioning you into a testimony to help someone else.
Prayer: Father, we don’t like it when life comes down hard on us. We often ask why me? Today, I pray that instead of “why me” we sit back, pray, and ask “where are you in the middle of my storm?” Help me understand how to endure this trial with grace and truth in order help your people. In Jesus name I pray, amen.
Let It Go 
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