Life is full of unexpected contingencies. And we can choose to be paralyzed by the unpredictability of life or charge ahead. Too often when our carefully crafted plans falter, we let worry win, anxiety overwhelm us, and fear eclipse our faith.

However, Solomon gives us a reason to live boldly in the face of uncertainty…and to live without regrets.

In fact, his four-step formula goes something like this:

1. Be Wise
2. Be Poised
3. Be Bold
4. Enjoy Life

Click here for more from Pastor Tommy Nelson on Ecclesiastes 11-12

Are you concerned with spiritual atrophy?  Just as we can experience physical atrophy when we don’t exercise our muscles, we can feel the effects when our spiritual muscles are never exercised.  We can neglect to: stretch our faith, build up our mind, or increase in wisdom.

C.S. Lewis once wrote in his book Screwtape Letters, “Indeed, the safest road to Hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.”

Solomon would say, “Our axe has become dull.”

This reminds me of Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide over the last 35 years.  His seventh habit is “sharpen the saw”—preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have: you. It means having a balanced program for self-renewal in the four areas of life: physical, social/emotional, mental, and spiritual.

Are you sharpening your saw to stay poised?

Click here for more from Pastor Tommy Nelson on Ecclesiastes 10