Hard Work

Proverbs 10:4,5 Lazy hands will make you poor; hard-working hands will make you rich. A son who works hard while it is harvest time will be successful, but one who sleeps through the harvest is worthless.

I want to share something with you today that has frustrated the living daylights out of me for many years. It’s something that I really don’t understand; Christians who expect it to be easy, Christians who want to be lazy. I simply don’t get it.

One of the things that I’ve noticed in full-time Christian ministry is that finding disciples who are willing to work hard is not an easy thing to do. So many apply for a position with us, and yet, because it’s “ministry”, because God is a God of love and of grace and of mercy, they expect it to be easy.

They don’t expect to have to work hard. Of course, not everyone’s like that but a lot are, and over the years I’ve had to let people go because of a lack of diligence and application. They were shocked when I expected them to put in a solid day’s work.

So the team we have now, small though it is, is an amazing team. They believe in serving the Lord with all that they are. And that … that’s how it should be:

Proverbs 10:4,5 Lazy hands will make you poor; hard-working hands will make you rich. A son who works hard while it is harvest time will be successful, but one who sleeps through the harvest is worthless.

Should we lead balanced lives? Yes! Should we have times of rest as well? Absolutely! But listen to me … every disciple of Jesus Christ is called to the serious business of winning souls for eternity. Yes, we each have a different part to play, but we’re called to do it with diligence and application, sacrifice and commitment, whether paid or unpaid. Or do we imagine somehow that Jesus was lazy in His public ministry? Remember, one who sleeps through the harvest is worthless.

Don’t waste your life.

That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.