Today's Verse: Proverbs 19:15

Sunday, October 3, 1999

Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the shiftless man goes hungry.
Now you can listen to Today's Verse on iTunes, Spotify, Echo devices, and more!

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

I was raised in a family with three boys. Dad had a theory: A certain amount of testosterone had to be burned off by each boy every day. If it weren't burned off daily, the house would quickly become unlivable, so he always had hard work for us to do outside. Dad didn't have to memorize Proverbs 19:15 - it was embedded in his DNA! Growing up, I didn't appreciate the importance of hard work. They didn't call it "hard" in our neck of the woods by accident! In those boyhood years, I would have been content to be a lollygagger (in "Cornbread English," that's what Solomon's ol' lazy, "shiftless man") without my dad's imposed work requirements as a boy. As I've grown older, I've found that working hard with my hands has many redeeming qualities, while being a lollygagger has NONE. Lollygagging should never be confused with genuine rest to honor God and help us prepare to do a week of hard work!

My Prayer...

El Shaddai, God over all things, please teach me the balance between work and rest. Help me to balance both so that I can bring you honor and display your gracious rule over my heart and my time. Help me be productive, hard-working, and honorable. In the name of Jesus, I ask this. Amen.

Have thoughts on this devotional? Leave a comment

2 Related Resources by Heartlight

Illustration

Illustration of Proverbs 19:15 — Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the shiftless man goes hungry.

Other Devotionals from Heartlight for Sunday, October 3, 1999

A devotional to help reclaim Jesus as the daily Lord of our lives.
"Dear Precious One, Yesterday, I spoke to you about fear. Today I want to talk to you about worry and sins that lie behind so many of your worries:..."
A daily guide from the gospels that challenges readers to live for Jesus.
"Jesus knew the Pharisees had heard that he was baptizing and making more disciples than John (though Jesus himself didn't baptize them — his disciples..."
A daily dose of Christian quotes to inspire and encourage.
"One of Satan's ploys to retard spiritual productivity is getting Christians preoccupied with humanistic philosophy and other bankrupt substitutes for God's..."
The classic twice-daily devotional from Charles H. Spurgeon.
"It is the believer's privilege to use this language. If he is looking for aught from the world, it is a poor "expectation" indeed. But if he looks to...."

About This Devotional

Today's Verse is a free daily devotional that includes a Bible verse, thought and prayer.

The Thoughts and Prayer on Today's Verse are written by Phil Ware.

All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.