Work Your Land

(Prov 12:11 TNIV) Those who work their land will have abundant food, but those who chase fantasies have no sense.

This morning we continue our seriesIn this verse Solomon contrasts those who make a conscious decision to work their land with those who simply daydream the time away. If you have been following this series for any amount of time you should be able to tell that Solomon was not a fan of lazy people. One of the reoccurring themes of Proverbs is that diligent work leads to prosperity, while laziness leads to poverty.

Solomon starts out by telling us that those who choose to work their land will have an abundance of food. In other words, those who make a decision to maximize their opportunities will reap the benefits of their hard work. For us today, our work may not be farming, but we all have something to do. Whether it's a calling to pursue, a business to run, a career to develop in, or a home to manage, we all have an opportunity and a responsibility to work.

In Paul's second letter to the church in Thessalonica, he plainly said, "If a man will not work, he shall not eat" (2nd Thes 3:10). Paul did not have a lot of tolerance for laziness. From the time he was a boy he was diligent and dedicated to working. Before he came to Christ he persecuted the church with passion and zeal; and after coming to Christ he used that same passion and zeal to promote the Kingdom.

If you look at any of the people God used mightily in scripture you will find that none of them were lazy. Why? Because I have told you many times that God is not in the business of forcing us to do anything. He wants to operate in our lives, but He needs us to cooperate with Him.

This means that if God is going to do great things in and through us, we must have the discipline and the inner drive to work with Him daily. If we choose to sit around, idly doing nothing, He will simply work through someone else; someone who is willing to work.

The latter part of our text says that those who chase fantasies have no sense. Another translation tells us that they simply daydream the day away. They neglect their business, they waste company time and resources, and they hurt themselves by not moving forward. If you fail to move forward - by having a daily routine of personal development - you will eventually go backwards.
In other words, if you don't choose to progress you are choosing to regress. This reminds me of a series of commercials that used to run. The commercials were about going to college and the catch phrase was, "A mind is a terrible thing to waste." Those that waste their minds away by carelessly and endlessly daydreaming, when they should be active and industrious, will eventually awaken from the daydream only to find themselves in a situation they do not want to be in. If working your land leads to abundance and prosperity, then you the opposite must also be true. Wasting your time away leads to lack and poverty.

So what does this mean to you ? It means that you should work your ground today, whatever that ground is. I often say, "We are not called to sit, we are called to serve." Serve God today by being diligent over the work He has blessed you to have. Face every challenge head-on, knowing that you are blessed to be where you are. You are there to make a difference, but you won't if you are lazy. Don't daydream your and your company's time away. Do more than is expected of you.

Remember, you are representing Christ. You are His ambassador. When people come in contact with you, they are coming in contact with God's Kingdom. Don't give them the wrong idea!

Father, I thank You for blessing me to be able to work. I put my hands to work and I do it diligently. I am faithful over my time and the time/resources of others. I do not waste my day away by aimlessly daydreaming. I put my hands to DO all that You have blessed me to DO today. I know that You want to operate in my life today and I declare, right now, that I WILL cooperate with You. You and me Father, together, let's go and make a difference! In Jesus' name. Amen!