Benjamin Franklin was a brilliant statesman, scientist, printer, and a really sharp guy. In his newspaper “Poor Richard’s Almanac,” he often published witty sayings that Solomon would have appreciated. One of those was “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
The Story of the Leaf Blower
Such was the case several years ago when I was in a hardware on the Saturday morning after Christmas day. A young man came in to exchange the brand new very expensive back-pack blower that his wife had given him to use in the yard of their brand new home.
In his excitement to try it out, he fueled it with the gasoline for his leaf blower and hurried outside. After a few minutes it shut down and refused to restart, apparently defective. The store manager examined it and began asking questions leading up to had he read the instruction manual and added the small container of oil included with the blower to the gasoline, which he hadn’t.
At this point the manager began explaining the difference between two-cycle and four-cycle engines and broke the news that the customer had damaged the blower beyond repair and it was neither defective or covered under the warranty.
The young man was not happy and his colorful objections could be heard across the store. As things calmed down, reality set in and he began to consider his options. The best of option seemed to be his buying another brand new very expensive back-pack blower, allowing the manager to show him and teach him how to use it correctly, and returning home having in fact “exchanged the blower.” Something tells me his dear wife never heard the whole story.
An Ounce of Prevention
As a counselor I hear stories like this on a daily basis where an ounce of prevention would have been worth a pound of cure. Where lives, marriages and relationships have been severely if not irreparably damaged by choices and circumstances that could have been so easily avoided.
God’s Word is in fact the “Instruction Manual” of life which will if learned and followed steer us well away from disasters from adultery to addictions and set us free from bondage to fears, worries, anger, and any other spiritual stronghold.
He intends that it be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path by which He will guide us to the blessings and plans that He has for us.
God gave us the most wonderful Christmas gift of all in the Person of His Son the blessed Lord Jesus. He also gave us the gift of His Word and the Person of the Holy Spirit to help us understand, follow, and implement His Word into each and every area of our lives, leading us in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
Taking the time to read, understand, and “follow the directions” will help us avoid untold hurt and heartache in our lives and families, and make sure we don’t miss the joys and blessings that the Father has for each of us.
After all, “a stitch in time saves nine.” (That was another of Ben Franklin’s sayings.)