Get ready to start a journey…a journey through the pages of the Bible and the pages of your life.
Success in the eyes of God is not measured by your possessions but by your person. God is not impressed by what you own but who you are. Our passage today explains how to “find favor and good success in the sight of God and man.” That, at the end of the day, is true gain.
Who doesn’t want to be successful? I certainly do. Successful in my calling. Successful in marriage. Successful in parenting. The word “successful” means that things turn out the way you want them to turn out. Your dreams come true. Your hopes are realized. The challenge with success is not the desire to be successful. The challenge centers around the paths we take to reach the desired destination.
His name was John Dillinger, and he was known as Public Enemy #1. During the early 1930s, Dillinger traveled throughout the Midwest, robbing over two dozen banks and four police stations, and was responsible for the murder of several police officers. He was nicknamed “The Jackrabbit” for his graceful movements during heists, such as leaping over counters, and his many narrow getaways from police. Dillinger’s “winsome” personality caused many people to idolize the robber as the present-day Jesse James. Dillinger lived with a craving for more, but his hands and heart refused honest work.
Excuses. Excuses. Excuses. A lazy person is full of excuses. “I am overqualified.” “I am underqualified.” “That’s too challenging.” “That’s not challenging enough.” “I am waiting for the perfect job that perfectly fits my gifts and training.” It’s too hard, it’s too soft, it’s too hot, it’s too cold. Excuses. Excuses. Check out today’s proverb.
We all depend on other people. Being part of a team is not only fun and rewarding; it is necessary. A team can do together what no one person can do alone. The flip side is that when one person on the team drops the ball, misses an assignment, or fails to carry his/her weight…the entire team suffers.
You have seen them work. They are focused and active. Carrying up to twenty-five times their body weight, these busy little insects with chambered bodies make it their mission to secure food for the winter. Even though they face no threat of job loss, have no boss looking over their shoulder, and have no quota, they must meet. Ants innately get the job done and work especially hard during picnics and camping trips. Lazy ants don’t survive. Neither do lazy people.
He was a great high school athlete. A fullback in a wishbone offense, he could run over, around, and away from those who tried to bring him down. With his natural strength and abilities, he was set to make a name for himself—except for one thing—he was lazy. Glimpses of greatness appeared when he felt like it, but most of the time, his effort was lackluster.
It was the largest natural disaster in US history, causing well over $100 billion in damage. The storm flooded the entire city as well as neighboring parishes. Yet many ignored the repeated warnings that Hurricane Katrina was headed for New Orleans, and, in the end, 1,800 people lost their lives. Hundreds of other lives were saved only because rescue workers risked theirs.
How do you respond to the instruction of someone who loves you deeply and wants the best for you? Here are two scenarios. Which scenario best fits you?
Have you ever strayed off the spiritual path? Took a shortcut? Got spiritually lazy? Gave into a “favorite” sin? The old hymn written by Robert Robinson in the 1700s says it well. I am “prone to wander,” “prone to leave the God I love.” Thankfully, God lovingly confronts us.
In today’s passage, wisdom (personified) cries out in the noisy streets and reminds all who will listen that she is willing and ready to pour out her heart to all who will listen and respond to her rebuke and correction. But to those who reject her, terror will strike them “like a storm,” and calamity will come “like a whirlwind” (Proverbs 1:27).
Have you ever heard it said of a person, “You just can’t tell them anything!”? Hopefully, the statement wasn’t aimed in your direction. There are people who refuse to listen. Their mind is made up. Their way is always the right way. Don’t dare insinuate they might be wrong. This attitude is a neon sign of pride. A humble person is open to correction. Our passage today says, “He who hates reproof is stupid.”