Scripture: Proverbs 6:10-11 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands, and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man.
Observation It only takes a little: poverty comes to those who take but a little rest… and a little more… and a little more. ‘I’ll do it tomorrow.’ Very few come to poverty suddenly, by a crisis or financial hit. For most it comes gradually, the wake of bad decisions, poor choices, unwise habits, a critical mass of procrastination. Then look around and you’re in poverty with no way out.
Application This easily be me. Very often I have said, ‘A little sleep.’ It is not my habit, to be sure, but it could be. I am a hair-breadth away from this. The projects which I am responsible for could pile up if I want ‘just a little more sleep’. This is not a Sabbath. Intentional rest to worship and to rest is not what Proverbs is about. Sabbath says, ‘Work hard for 6 day; rest hard for 1 day’. Proverbs warns us against laziness, against procrastination, and against bad decisions.
Life application for today Make a plan for this week: work hard for 6 days and rest hard for 1. After 7 days, measure: How did I do?
Prayer Bring to mind the things that need doing and help me (and I need help!) to do them.