Push The Plow
Rise and Shine for Jesus! \O/
By Pam Iannello (my late mother)
"Push the Plow"
Proverbs 20:4 (KJV)
The
sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg
in harvest, and have nothing.
What
a way to start out the week! That verse feels kind of like a bucket
of cold water thrown in our faces when we read it, doesn't it? It
catches us by surprise because none of us really likes to consider
ourselves sluggards, amen? When the thought of being a lazy bum is
introduced to us, we shudder to think it could be so. But - is
it so?? Just what is your
definition of a sluggard? Webster's 1828 says this: a person
habitually lazy, idle, and inactive, a drone. In actuality, the
sluggard has a bad habit of doing nothing and getting nowhere! Poor
thing... Is he just a victim of society; has he just had some tough
breaks in life? Should he be pitied and helped? Why do you think
this has come about, just what seems to be the sluggard's problem??
The answer lies within the verse itself....
"The
sluggard WILL NOT plow..."
Ladies,
the Bible clearly shows us that a sluggard is not a victim of his
circumstance, he is simply a person who has a problem of the will -
he won't
work! That's right, a sluggard operates on "won't power"
rather than will power! It's not that the sluggard doesn't know what
to do or doesn't have the capability to work, or doesn't even have
the equipment necessary to get the job done. In fact, we know from
this verse he has access to a plow - he
just won't use it!! The
sluggard has made it a pattern of frequently walking away from
responsibility…
James
4:17 (KJV)
Therefore
to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.
Cancer Consolations: God's Tender Mercies Book Review
Ladies,
laziness should not be permitted, not in our own lives or in the
lives of the children God has given us to train. I asked you a
minute ago if a sluggard should be pitied or helped… As far as God
is concerned, a sluggard should be disciplined! If you'll look in 2
Thessalonians 3:10-15, the apostle Paul counseled the church to stop
supporting financially and even associating with those who persisted
in a life of idleness:
For even when we were with you, this we commanded
you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat. For we hear
that there are some which walk among you disorderly, working not at
all, but are busybodies. Now them that are such we command and
exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and
eat their own bread. But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.
But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing. And if any man obey not
our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with
him, that he may be ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but
admonish him as a brother.
Yes,
hunger and loneliness can be very effective ways to make the idle
person become productive! Paul was not advising coldness or cruelty,
but the kind of tough love that a person would show a brother or
sister. As mothers, we need to be tough on our kids when it comes to
work! We need to teach our children to be devoted to a life of work,
otherwise what good are they going to be to the Lord one day?
They'll end up living disorderly Christian lives if they don't learn
to work…
Exodus
18:20 (KJV)
And
thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shalt shew them the
way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do.
Are
your children learning the right attitude toward work from you, dear
mother? Are you
really willing to plow, or have they heard your excuses time and time
again?? One bad example of a worker can destroy the devotion and
hinder the work ethic of others. Sin in the life of a believer
always affects the rest of the church, why wouldn't sin in our lives
affect our children?? Don't put up with their excuses or whiny
complaints about the jobs you give them to do! God doesn't put up
with ours; He disciplines the sluggard! If your children moan at the
work you have for them, they'll moan at God's work too. Be sure you
are training your children to do their work quietly. If you aren't
instilling willingness
in them as workers, you are teaching them to be idle fools and to
love a life of disorder.
Luke 9:62 (KJV)
And
Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and
looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
The
words “looking back” here in this verse are a perfect picture of
forming a habit. The sluggard, when faced with plowing, always falls
back into the same pattern of excuses as to why it can't be done, why
he can't move ahead. The Bible says in Proverbs 13:4, "The soul
of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the
diligent shall be made fat." It's not that the sluggard doesn't
have a desire for what's right, because he does! In fact, the
sluggard is always asking for prayer, counsel, and guidance. Trouble
is, everybody else is busy on his behalf but him!! The sluggard has
nothing to show for all of his desire to do right; he's stuck in the
mud! He just leans on his plow, looks ahead at the work and effort
that is going to be necessary on his part by a long list of reason
after reason. “It's too cold, it's too hot, and it’s too much,
it's too hard, it's impossible, it's unfair, and it’s not worth
it.” Those are all sluggard slogans. Oh, the sluggard has the
knowledge, the ability, and the opportunity to make himself fit for
the kingdom of God, yet wastes it away with whining and self-pity,
hoping someone will come along and rescue him! He is therefore unfit
for the Lord's work with such a propensity for laziness. God says let
him alone; let the sluggard suffer lack, for
it is his only motivation!
1 Cor. 9:10 (KJV)
....For
our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should
plow in hope....
No
matter what the sluggard's choices might be, the Bible says we are
not to weary in well doing. Ladies, we must not be sluggards in our
attitude toward our responsibilities! Are you apathetic about the
work that lies before you each day? God says we are to plow ahead in
hope, not despair. The job can and must be done, your field lies
before you - stop making excuses and get busy! How would you like it
if the Lord gave you a list of excuses as to why He couldn't work on
your behalf every time you asked for His help in prayer?? Press
toward the mark; push your plow through the hardened ground of your
heart and break it up, till it, and turn over the stones that have
been in the way of progress. Your plow has been idle for so long,
people are getting tired of seeing it sitting there doing nothing.
They're getting sick of you begging for help and guidance, they want
to see you do your own work for a change - and so does your heavenly
Father! You've got a plow - now push
it! Stop trying to get in on somebody else’s harvest and create
your own produce!
By
now, you have learned that inactivity leads to sin. However, when you
stay busy plowing your field, I daresay you'll keep yourself out of
trouble! Workers have no time for folly. Moreover, there is a
definite difference between leisure and laziness…
Genesis
2:2-3 (KJV)
And on
the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested
on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God
blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had
rested from all his work which God created and made.
Relaxation
and recreation provide a necessary and much-needed balance to our
lives, but when it is time to work, believers should jump right in!!
We should make the most of our talent and time, doing all we can to
provide for our dependents and ourselves. Follow God's example - rest
when you should be resting, and work when you should be working! And
PLEASE get rid of all those excuses…
God
Bless,
Pam
Isaiah
60:1&2
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