The Alpha of Avoiding Idleness and Being Industrious

UV 3059/10000 The Alpha of Avoiding Idleness and Being Industrious

She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness
Proverbs 31 v 27
At whatever age and whether man or woman, we are expected not to eat the “bread of idleness”. The apostle Paul said that if we do not work, we should not eat. Our minds should be occupied by the word of God or else the enemy would occupy it. Imagine a land occupied by the enemy- the people in that land will not enjoy the fruit of their labour, they will be oppressed and their liberties trampled upon. Likewise, if we stay idle, we will not fulfil our God-given purpose and potential. We will become busy bodies , carrying tales and indulging in gossip and matters that do not concern us for the idle mind is the devil’s factory.
We need to enjoy working creatively, using all of our skills, our resources, our talents and our time. Work is not drudgery but a form of worship of the Lord who worked hard on all of us that He needed to rest on the seventh day. The word says that the Lord does not slumber or sleep but watches over us day and night. We need to be mentally alert, disciplined and diligent in our work life. Whatever we do, we need to do as if we are doing it for the Lord, with all the power at our command and all the grace the Lord will provide us in response to our earnest prayers to bless our efforts. We need to factor in planning, wisdom and knowledge into all of our efforts.
We need to live with a sense of responsibility to all of God’s creation and creatures. Responsibility implies responding in accordance with our God-given abilities. It involves being good stewards of whatever He has placed in our hands. We should work not just to meet our own needs or the needs of our families but to help the needy and poor as the Lord leads us. However, it does not mean that we turn into workaholics with no work-life balance, with no quality to time to spend with our near and dear and on the important issues of life. We need to redeem time by settings aside time for godly priorities like having a regular devotion time, for fellowship, for Bible study, for worship. We can also redeem time by delegating what needs to be delegated, by working smarter and not necessarily harder.