30 One
day I walked by the field of an old lazybones, and then passed the vineyard of
a lout; 31 They were overgrown with
weeds, thick with thistles, all the fences broken down. 32 I took a long look and pondered what I saw;
the fields preached me a sermon and I listened: 33
"A nap here, a nap there, a day off here, a day off there,
sit back, take it easy—do you know what comes next? 34 Just this: You can look forward to a dirt-poor
life, with poverty as your permanent houseguest!" --Proverbs 24:30-34 (MSG)
The story of this lazy man caught my eye in today’s reading
of the proverbs. The immediate question that came to mind was, “What sermon does
my life preach?” The author of Proverbs describes this man whose overgrown
vineyard was evidence of where he had not been attentive through the years. It
further helped him to understand his future in
permanent poverty. So what about us? What about you? What's overgrown in your life? What area of your life have
you allowed to govern itself—not really paying close attention to how it
develops? What part of your world sends the message to onlookers that God is a
part of your life and what witness do other parts send? Or is it a consistent
message across the board?
As we self-evaluate and prepare to finish this year strong,
it is important that we are honest with ourselves about where we truly
are, how far we have to go, and what role we play in that process. Perhaps we’ve
become “lazybones” who need a little prodding so we understand that our vineyard needs attention. Perhaps we’ve simply been content to let
things fester—relationships go down a slow spiral, businesses lose face, weight
gain leading to one ailment after another. No matter where you are now, you simply
need to understand that it’s never too late. Sometimes before a good harvest
must come a good pruning and weeding season. Sometimes others will do the work
for us while most of the time it’s work we must do ourselves.
Today, be encouraged to do the work so your life will begin
to preach the message that both you and God will be proud of.
Blessings,
MinD
No comments:
Post a Comment