A man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed -- without remedy (Proverbs 29:1).

I'm so glad to be down to my last three days in this Proverbs 365 project.  It's been a good experience, overall, but it's become exhausting -- particularly here through the home stretch, over the last month or so.  At times, it's felt like it's all I can do to just put one foot in front of the other and keep making progress, getting closer to the finish line.  Even if it's ugly.  As much as I've tried to keep things fresh and avoid making it feel this way, these little reflections on the Proverbs have recently become a sort of homework.  I do it out of a sense of obligation, not out of a desire to learn.  On a certain level, I've just resigned myself to this fact.  I tell myself:  "You can't quit now.  Who cares if the stuff that's coming out from day to day is total crap?  You've just got to get it finished at this point.  Bang out a first draft, and then all the crap can be reworked in the next draft.  Just finish what you've set out to do."

Suffice to say:  the calendar can be a cruel task-master.  Even though I entered into the situation willingly (and even eagerly), I've lately become a slave to the daily grind.  The same things happen in marriage, in ministry, in physical fitness, in financial management.  Even while I'm reading all this incredible material from one of my favorite books of the Bible, I'm tuning out just so I can get done what needs to get done.  Pathetic... but that's where I'm at.

Then I read Proverbs 29:1, which says, "A man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed -- without remedy."  Immediately, I'm challenged to consider my situation and ask myself, "Am I being stiff-necked here in any way?"  I'm taking in all this wisdom day after day -- stuff that is truly life-giving, encouraging, and satisfying... but also truly challenging, confrontational, and unsettling.  But am I really digesting it?  Am I really processing it?  Am I really responding to the rebuke of the Proverbs?  Or am I just doing the bare minimum to find a little nugget of truth, write my obligatory 500 words about it, and then just get on with my day without internalizing the material in any meaningful way?!?  In essence:  am I remaining stiff-necked after many rebukes?

I think it's good for me to be afraid to answer these questions.  This verse is both reassuring and chilling.  It's reassuring to remember that God is deeply concerned about justice -- looking at people's hearts and making sure that no one will get away with anything (despite whatever contemporary appearances might seem to indicate).  But it's also challenging to remember that my momentary well-being is not necessarily a sign of my righteousness.  I need to continually renew myself, keeping a soft heart towards God.  I need to be flexible and willing to change, even when it's uncomfortable.  I need to listen to whatever rebukes God might send my way... Or else the consequences could be quite severe and quite permanent.