Proverbs 10:4. A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.
To say that many of us struggle with work would be an understatement. Ever since the fall of man in the garden, work has become one of mankind’s greatest struggles. Work was ordained by God and given to us as a gift for our good – “God placed the man in the garden to work it and keep it.” But the curse of sin has made work far more taxing. Even futile at times.
But God hasn’t given up on work, and neither should we. God still wants us to work hard, doing what we do with all our might as unto the Lord. God isn’t concerned with us getting rich as we might think of the word. Nor is poverty the problem. Slackness is. Sin’s curse plus our slackness is a dangerous combination, bringing a poverty that is shameful because it could have been prevented.
But I don’t work hard because I’m stuck in a job I don’t love, you argue. But notice too that this proverb is far less concerned with the worker’s passion than it is with their diligence. In Solomon’s time there were no “dream jobs.” The family business was your pre-determined destiny. Finding your passion first and then finding a job to match was simply not a thing.
This idea that we must find our dream job is a myth. The Millennial Generation in America is said to be the least attached generation to their work in history. A recent Gallup Poll revealed that only 20% of millennial workers said they felt attached to their job, 60% said they are open to finding a new career (three times higher than any other generation), and around 50% say that they are not engaged at work. The poll goes on to estimate that the Millennial generation’s consistent inconsistency in the workplace costs the US economy 30 billion dollars a year.
This is not meant to be an attack on Millennials (there are many contributing factors to these statistics). But it is meant to be an attack on the myth that we have to love our jobs before we can and should be diligent at work. A slack hand causes poverty. And the poverty your slackness is causing may not be your own. We are all connected. There is a ripple effect to all things, including how hard we work.
For the Christian, working hard should be a natural overflow of the life of Christ in you. Hard work therefore is an act of love. The Christian who has been perfectly loved, can now find deep in their heart the ability to love others THROUGH their diligence. Look at how Paul admonishes the Thessalonians:
1 Thessalonians 4:9-12. 9Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, 10But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, 11and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.
The love of Christ in us for one another should compel us to work hard. If it’s not, go back to the cross of love. Look at the work Christ has done in you and for you. Let it compel you first of all to love, and second of all to love through your diligence at work.
This is God at work in you.
You: In what ways do you struggle with your work ethic?
You in Christ: How does your hard work demonstrate Christ’s love for you?
Christ in you: How can hard work demonstrate Christ’s love for others in your workplace?
Pray: Father, thank you for work. Thank you for giving me diligence. Use me in my workplace today for your glory. Amen.
To Live is Christ 