Being Lazy

It is Sunday afternoon, and I thank God for giving me grace to write this article on laziness. It is my prayer that God would open our eyes to analyze our lives, and pluck out laziness from our lives.

Laziness is a disinclination to activity or exertion despite having the ability to do so. It can be also defined as "the lack of desire to expend effort". We know that nothing can be accompolished in the world without effort. The more effort we put on anything, the more productive we are. If we have the capability to do something, and if we are not willing to put effort on it, then laziness is on our door steps. It grows in us in vast proportion, that one day it knocks us down without hope, robbing us of the joy of the most precious life which God has given us.

Laziness is a terrible sin. It leads us to commit many other sins too. We have heard that "An idle mind is a devil's workshop". How true it is, isn't it?.Most of us have a tendency to postpone things that could be done today.Let us understand here that on every occasion we postpone something, we are missing an oppurtunity. God gives us lot of oppurtunities in life and it is our responsibility to grab them. The most successful people in the world are the one's who grabbed on to the oppurtunities that had come across.

We can find that the person who wakes early in the morning and communes with God will be the most succesful person. In Proverbs 6:4-11 we find that

"4 Allow no sleep to your eyes,
no slumber to your eyelids.

5 Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter,
like a bird from the snare of the fowler.

6 Go to the ant, you sluggard;
consider its ways and be wise!

7 It has no commander,
no overseer or ruler,

8 yet it stores its provisions in summer
and gathers its food at harvest.

9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard?
When will you get up from your sleep?

10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest-

11 and poverty will come on you like a bandit
and scarcity like an armed man. "

We need to keep oursleves busy always, and rest only at the required times. I am not saying that we need to work always. Rest is very much important, but if we rest more than required, then we need to change ourselves. When we are not doing anything, satan creates unnecessary thoughts, fears, confusions and temptations in our minds. Most of us sin when we are lazy. David sinned with Bathsheba when he was lazily wandereing in the terrace while he was supposed to be on the battlefield.

Today, many of us could be browsing internet without any purpose and it is in these situations, we are drifted towards sin through the internet.

The Bible tells us to be busy working while there is still light, because night is coming. That means that until Christ returns, we need to be busy serving God so that His plan can be fulfilled. God has a plan and purpose for everyone's life, and for every situation. Since we can't know the entire mind of God, or what His specific plan and purpose is in every case, our job is to simply be obedient. God uses our obedience in serving Him, to accomplish His purpose.

Many think that God would do everything for us, if we commit to Him. It is very true, but God expects us to do our part also. God cannot bless us if we are lazy. Definitely not. If we look at the life of Jesus, He was never lazy. He was always doing the will of the Father. He prayed very often. Let us understand our pathetic situation and come out of laziness.

As far as the issue of being lazy is concerned, the Bible clearly tells us in many passages that it is a sin to be lazy and nonproductive. That is why today I want to encourage you not to fall into this trap. If being lazy is an issue that you battle with, it is time to recognize it and battle to conquer laziness just like any other sin in your life.

There may be some of us who are very busy in our offices. May be we work seven days a week and accompolish a lot of things in our proffesions, but find ourselves lazy when it comes to God's things. We are lazy to pray, read Bible and perhaps going to Church. Dear friend, let us not forget that it is only because of the grace of God that we exist. The Bible says in Matthew 22:21 "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's."

Let us analyze our lives now. If we are lazy in all aspects of life, let us ask God to grant us grace to come out of our laziness. If we are lazy towards God, let us make our spiritual lives straight by putting more efforts and time to study the scriptures and prayer. Let us defeat satan's effort to impart laziness into us and his plans to destroy us. Let us not forget that in the name of Jesus, there is power and victory.

Paul says in Philippians 4:13 says that "I can do all things through Christ who Strengthens me". Apostle Paul was a very busy man. Laziness was never found in him. That is the reason he accompolished so many things for Christ and he was able to tell that in 2 Timothy 4:7,8

"7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."

Let us not forget that we need to give an account to God on the day of judgement for every single second that we waste. God is the gifter of time and he expects us to use it for His glory. We are living in the period of grace, and now is the time to repent for the sin of laziness and change our lives for the Glory of God!