Socrates is credited with the statement, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” That is one of those pithy observations that proves more and more true the longer one lives.

In youth there’s often an attitude of “Who cares about examining my life, I just want to live it to the full! I don’t see any need to evaluate my choices because I don’t want to limit them. I want to enjoy everything, try everything and deny myself nothing pleasurable.” And then the price tags start piling up.

By the time a thinking person is middle aged, he or she understands self-analysis is strategically important. This is simply because pleasure is no longer the highest value. The parties, the exploration of drugs, alcohol, sex and other adrenalin laced adventures are no longer the measure of “the good life.” Examination has begun to make sense. A need for meaning, value and purpose has surfaced.

This is especially true for those who have become parents. The overriding question now has become: What values and principles do I want to pass on to my children? How do I provide guidance and wisdom that could help them avoid the pain of my bad choices? Suddenly, love for one’s progeny brings caution to former patterns of recklessness. With other lives at stake, I quite naturally find myself wanting to do what is right and good and model it.

And then comes the era of self-analysis…old age. This is all too often a time for regrets. “If only” and “I wish I had done things differently” become familiar territory. But it’s not possible to go back. I don’t know how old Socrates was when he uttered his famous line, but I would bet he was not in his youth. Thinking deeply and carefully about what is best and choosing accordingly is the product of experience. Avoiding pain has become not only important but a high priority.

Jesus greatly expanded the wisdom of Socrates. His sermon on the mount is a collection of ideas that have helped countless people examine their lives with good outcomes. If you haven’t read this famous piece of literature lately, you can find it in the first book in the New Testament of the bible. Matthew chapters 5,6, and 7 record a glimpse of the life we are designed to live forever…if we grasp its value.

This great discourse finishes like this:
“Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came and the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash!”

So, examining where you build your life and what materials you use is essential to successful living. It really is that simple. The unexamined life is a “sand based” life. The storms always come, and the crash is inevitable. Rock solid living seems to make a lot more sense!