Proverbs 6:10-11
A little extra sleep, a little more slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest – then poverty will pounce on you like a bandit; scarcity will attack you like an armed robber.
I don’t know about you, but I like to sleep in. These days, that might be 9:30am on a Saturday, which is nice, but I certainly can’t make a habit of it. If I did, who would hire me? And if I did have a job, how could I keep it? Additionally, what kind of example would I be setting for my children? What kind of witness would I be for a watching world?
Granted, we all need a good night’s sleep, but getting more than we need is – in most cases – laziness, plain and simple. God, of course, neither sleeps nor slumbers (Ps. 121:4) and we should all be grateful for that. Jesus, too, had an incredible work ethic while on earth (Jn. 9:4) and Paul became a tentmaker during his ministry to help support himself (Acts 18:3). Can you imagine Jesus hitting the snooze button while the lost remained trapped in their sin? Or Paul rolling over and pulling up the covers to block the sunlight while the spread of the gospel came to a halt? Of course not!
Its worth noting that Solomon doesn’t say “a lot of extra sleep, a lot more slumber, a lot more folding of the hands to rest.” No, the amount that can lead you into trouble is small and seemingly harmless. The bitter fruit of this casual laziness doesn’t appear overnight, but if you continue on that path, it will surely happen. It’s helpful to put this into the context of a rather famous saying that has been attributed to a number of different people over the years:
“Sow a thought, reap an action; sow an action, reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a character; sow a character, reap a destiny.”
Get up! Hit the ground running! Wash your face! Exercise! Eat breakfast! The Christian should look forward to the new day that God has given them with excitement and anticipation. Embracing each day with gusto brings productivity and blessings. Hitting the snooze button and rolling over puts you one step further down the path that leads to poverty and scarcity.
