Bible Reading: Proverbs 5-6; 1 Corinthians 14:1-20
Memory verse: “Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.” Proverbs 6:9-10 (KJV)
Have you ever thought about eradicating poverty in the world? Wouldn’t it be very nice if every has and no one is lacking in anything? I got the answer to these questions from the servant of God, Moses, in Deuteronomy 15:11a (KJV), “For the poor shall never cease out of the land:” He said these words encouraging those who were well-to-do then to assist the poor and the needy.
Jesus, also, quoted this scripture in response to a disciple who objected to the worship of the woman who poured a very expensive ointment on His head, insisting the perfume should have been sold and the money given to the poor. Matthew 26:11 (KJV), “For ye have the poor always with you;” So poverty will always be in the world.
Poverty is the quality or state of being poor or indigent; want or scarcity of means of subsistence; indigence; need. Many reasons have been put forth as causes of poverty. However, some of these are completely avoidable. In fact, some cases of poverty is simply a choice of the individuals involved.
Today’s bible reading pointed out a factor that make many poor today. Proverbs 16:10 (NKJV) says, “A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to sleep.” Laziness is one of the causes of poverty today. A lazy person just wants things to be done on its own. Nothing works unless you make it work. And since nobody can move you unless you do so on your own it becomes difficult to assist many who are lazy.
Proverbs also tells us the end in store for the lazy: A lazy person becomes a servant (or debtor): Proverbs.12.24 (NKJV) says, “The hand of the diligent will rule, But the lazy man will be put to forced labor.” His future is bleak: “A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing” (Proverbs 20:4); he may come to poverty: “The soul of the lazy man desires and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich” (Proverbs 13:4 KJV).
The bible used ants as reference as to how diligent a person ought to be. “Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise” (Proverbs 6:6). Ants plan ahead while working together. Every person is expected to plan ahead and work to make the plan come to pass. Work is a must for a believer because Christ worked diligently while on earth and still working in heaven making intercession for us.
Are you finding it difficult to get up and make things work? Ask the Lord for help to know how to plan and also look around for people who are diligent. As you engage your hands, doing away with procrastination too, God blesses the works of your hand.
Action Plan: There are many people around who are just lying idle for no reason. Engage as many as you can as your word may fire them up into being who God has made them to be.
Bro. Worthmore Aghanenu