I heard a story of a group of sailors on a ship at sea. A discussion broke out over who was the laziest man on board. After many opinions were given one man found a way to end all the arguments. He shouted out, “I’ll settle this right now. I have a 50 dollar bill that I will give to the laziest man on this vessel.” Several of the men stepped up quickly to claim the 50 dollars, but the winner was obvious. He was the one who stayed in his bunk and said, “Could one of you guys just roll me over and shove that 50 in my back pocket?”
Laziness is something the book of Proverbs rebukes over and over again. Diligent labor is something that is praised in the Proverbs. In the New Testament we are instructed to do our work as unto the Lord. It is clear from the Bible that a strong work ethic is a spiritual issue!
It is important that we do not allow laziness into our spiritual lives as well. We all know how easy it is to neglect spiritual things. We do not intentionally set out to drift away from that close fellowship with the Lord. It is usually a slow fading away of closeness to Christ, like the gradual evaporation of water from a glass over a period of time.
How does it happen? It is a form of spiritual laziness! We get slothful concerning Bible reading and prayer. We get to liking that extra hour of sleep on Sunday morning more than the fellowship of our Sunday School class. Nothing is better than watching football on Sunday, so why not skip Sunday evening service? Plus, we work hard all week; we don’t have much time for ministry anymore. Because we are not diligent about the things of God, we find ourselves saying and doing things we know hurt others and we begin to damage our intimacy with the Lord.
Of course the devil is involved, but the reality is, we let much of it happen to ourselves through simple neglect. The good news is that God is all about giving us a fresh new start. He is ready to forgive and begin the rebuilding process. He is patiently waiting for us to admit we have been gradually wandering away and turn back to Him. No one can “roll us over” and put godly passion back into our hearts. It is up to us to allow Him first place in our hearts and our activities.
Laziness is something the book of Proverbs rebukes over and over again. Diligent labor is something that is praised in the Proverbs. In the New Testament we are instructed to do our work as unto the Lord. It is clear from the Bible that a strong work ethic is a spiritual issue!
It is important that we do not allow laziness into our spiritual lives as well. We all know how easy it is to neglect spiritual things. We do not intentionally set out to drift away from that close fellowship with the Lord. It is usually a slow fading away of closeness to Christ, like the gradual evaporation of water from a glass over a period of time.
How does it happen? It is a form of spiritual laziness! We get slothful concerning Bible reading and prayer. We get to liking that extra hour of sleep on Sunday morning more than the fellowship of our Sunday School class. Nothing is better than watching football on Sunday, so why not skip Sunday evening service? Plus, we work hard all week; we don’t have much time for ministry anymore. Because we are not diligent about the things of God, we find ourselves saying and doing things we know hurt others and we begin to damage our intimacy with the Lord.
Of course the devil is involved, but the reality is, we let much of it happen to ourselves through simple neglect. The good news is that God is all about giving us a fresh new start. He is ready to forgive and begin the rebuilding process. He is patiently waiting for us to admit we have been gradually wandering away and turn back to Him. No one can “roll us over” and put godly passion back into our hearts. It is up to us to allow Him first place in our hearts and our activities.
I was going to leave a comment, but I'm too lazy. Just kidding. Good words, Dave. Enjoy the blogging experience - Darrell.
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