Proverbs 15:10-12
He that hates being taught...will perish in his foolishness.
Neither will he seek a wise man for counsel…so that his life might be saved.
I am still amazed at the multitude of people throughout our society that have unbelievable educations, abilities, and wealth...but yet simply refuse to get the counsel they need when facing obstacles much larger than themselves.
These are the ones who refuse to admit that they have problems of any kind...until one day...they wake up one morning to see that their spouse has left, their children are in jail, they need bypass surgery, they have an addiction, or even worse yet…they don’t wake up at all. They perish in their stubborn foolishness.
It is not a show of weakness...but one of wisdom...that seeks out the leverage it needs to overcome its inefficiencies! If we need money, we usually seek someone with wealth. If we have health problems, we seek a doctor, or someone who can prescribe proper eating habits and exercise. If we run into legal problems, we seek a lawyer. However, there are issues that we face in this life that go beyond mere physical needs. These needs cannot be weighed in pounds, or measured in dollars and cents. They are spiritual ones. Their roots run deep, deep, deep within the heart of mankind…problems like pride, fear, insecurity, doubt, bitterness, hate, anger, lying, selfishness...and the list goes on and on. These problems cannot be quantified or measured, and oftentimes it would behoove us to seek help and counsel to solve them just like any other issue in life.
Here is a really good example to describe to you what I am talking about. You have this really heavy filing cabinet that you need to move from one room to another. However, the problem is that it is simply too bulky and heavy for you to just pick it up and move alone. So in order to move the cabinet, you go to the garage and get your dolly. The dolly does nothing to change the weight of the object itself. It simply gives you the leverage that you need to displace the weight, so that it becomes manageable and movable.
In this same way God works with us concerning the difficulties and weakness that we all face in life. I have a saying, “Life is never perfect, but it can get better.” In other words, God doesn’t promise us that the problems of this life are going to completely go away. He simply promises to give us access to the wisdom, the leverage, and the grace that we need to make them controllable, manageable, and movable!!