Be Diligent

Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and be wise! Proverbs 6:6 (New Living Translation [NLT])

There is a joke about a man who goes to the doctor and tells him that he can’t do all the things around the house that he use to. After the exam the man asks the doctor to give it to him straight. “In plain English,” said the doctor, “you’re just lazy.” “Okay,” the man says, “Now give me a medical term so I can tell my wife.” As Christians, we need to recognize that because we are humans, sometimes what we are suffering is not spiritual, it’s just us!

Proverbs is a great book to read. You can read a little or a lot. It is packed with wisdom. Proverbs 6: 6-11 is a lesson learned from the ant. The ant, without a boss or anyone urging it on, works hard all summer preparing for the inevitable onset of winter. Solomon writes that laziness will cause poverty to “pounce on you like a bandit”. No one was able to predict the current economic downturn coming a few years ago when it seemed like the Dow Jones Industrial Average was setting new highs every week. No one thinks about preparing for storms when it is sunny outside. Yet, this is the wise instruction of today’s passage. Don’t be lazy. Be diligent. In your work, your savings, your investment, in relationships, your prayer life and planning. Don’t wait. When you know something should be done, now is a good time. Today is a perfect day to do it.

My prayer for you today starts right now…

Deacon Larry Woodard