Scripture Devotion
A blunt axe costs double the strength. Wisdom says: stop and whet the edge.
“If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct.”
Reflection
The Teacher's shrewdest proverb about work: the man who won't sharpen his axe doesn't escape the labor — he doubles it. Brute effort compensating for a dull edge is the most exhausting way to live, and the most common. Wisdom is profitable to direct: the pause to sharpen — the skill learned, the plan made, the prayer prayed — isn't time off the task; it's the task done right. Paul tells Titus the same about Crete: sound doctrine first, then the pattern of good works runs true. Whet the edge before you swing today.