Slack in Your Work
“He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that
is a great waster.”
Proverbs 18:9 (KJV)
When we are slack in our work, when we work
slowly and half-heartedly we are brother to him who destroys/wastes (based on
which translation you’re using). It is sobering to realize that not doing your
best as unto God in everything you do means that you are choosing to serve who
you want to serve (selfishness). God has set a high standard, yea a perfect
standard: one which demands our all, our focus, our attention, and our effort.
When a machinist starts a new job and
works feverishly to benefit his new boss and company, he is doing his best. But
after time when the job’s newness seems to wear off and the blessings of having
a job there seems to vanish from memory, it is easy to “ease up” in your work.
When we do this we are brother—we are closely related—to him who destroys!
I’ve dealt with this issue as a young
man trying to get my own company going. At first, I worked hard and gave
everything, but as the hard work kept coming and my body felt like just going a
bit slower, I had to battle with slowing up/not working my hardest. In manual
labor, I probably won’t consistently have the same speed, but am I pushing
myself to my best? Am I working as if I was working for God (I’d definitely do
my best then)? Am I treating my employer the way I want to be treated by those
I hire?
This proverb comes back to one of the central principles of the New
Testament—doing to others what you want them to do for or to you (author’s
paraphrase). When I have somebody working for me who is lazy or I can tell
doesn’t have “his heart in his work,” I don’t like having him work for me
because I know that I’m not getting the best value for my buck, and they don’t
appreciate me hiring them because they aren’t acting like it. As an “employer,”
I feel like they are destroying my potential earnings and causing a drag on our
productivity. If I have too many of this type of people working for me, my
business will be destroyed!
We could go on looking at examples and
applications of this Proverb and maybe some of you need to, but my hope is that
the seriousness of this Scripture will be “latched onto.” I pray that we get
this into our hearts and spirits and that we work hard.
Lord, give us the strength to work for others
as we would want them to work for us. Help us to do our best as unto You,
Father. In Jesus Name, amen.
