Skip to main content

Diligence


The lazy man does not roast his game, but the diligent man prizes his possessions. (Proverbs 12:27)

          I spent yesterday working on three big goals: this blog entry, the front steps, and my novel and two “I really should” goals: my word of the day and my Christian Influence in History blogs. By quarter after six pm, I completed the current phase of the steps. If I do nothing more, we’ll be the only ones who know there was supposed to be more. But I have fussed over several Bible passages, trying to find one that inspired and … nothing. So, I worked in reverse. I started writing and found a theme for which I then found a verse. 
          The only thing I can say about myself today is “Diligence.” I spent part of three days cleaning the steps, finishing this morning. Though it’s unusual for me, I covered and taped the way you’re supposed to when you paint – which now means I need to find some white paint to touch up places where the tape pulled the white paint off! I put the first coat on right after lunch, and the second coat on shortly after dinner. In between the two coats, I fussed about this blog post, and I fretted over the fact that I wasn’t getting to my story the way I should. 
          According to the study notes on this verse, the idea is that the lazy man doesn’t complete his tasks, while the diligent person completes them and reaps the benefits thereof. As I keep walking to the front door to check on the steps (Yes, effectively watching paint dry) I’m getting to prize them. They look much better than they did. If I go on to the second phase, they’ll either look better still – or they’ll look tawdry. But, for the moment, I’m prizing my possessions – completed stairs and completed blog post.
          What are you working on that you’ll be able to treasure if you are diligent?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Saved?

  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:28-30) “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ ” (Matthew 7:21-23) Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.” (Romans 3:4)   What conclusion do you draw when someone who was raised in a Christian family and church, perhaps even playing a significant role in a chur...
Post a Comment
Read more

Meditations of the Heart

  May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. (Psalm19:14)           As I started writing this post, I noted that the meditations of my heart are all over the mental landscape, from a hub where eight superhighways come together to a lunar or nuclear landscape. Do you see my error? The moment I read the word meditation , I think about thoughts. But what’s described here is the meditations of our hearts ; our wills.           While the meditations of our minds may be all over the place, the meditations of our wills tend to be a little more stable by the time we are adults. We no longer tend to want to pursue the ten separate careers we did in any given day as children. Part of this is humble acceptance of reality. We come to understand that we can’t do it all. I think another part of it is disappointmen...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Shepherd!

                 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep . (John 10:14) God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” (Genesis 3:14) The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths     for his name’s sake. Even though I walk     through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil,     for you are with me; your rod and your staff,     they comfort me. (Psalm 23:1-4) For the Jews, it was politically incorrect to make claims about yourself as a teacher (or possibly as anything else.) Teachers were expected to take pride in the...
Post a Comment
Read more