There will be time to sleep!

The sluggard does not plow in the autumn;

    he will seek at harvest and have nothing... 
Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty;

    open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread. (Proverbs 20:4, 13)

Proverbs has much to say about laziness! I did a study of the contrasts in Proverbs about 30 years ago, which included the verses on wealth vs. poverty. It is clear throughout this book that laziness leads to poverty, and that there is no such thing as an easy way to wealth - it requires hard work!

I don’t think anyone would ever accuse me of laziness, because, outwardly I am a whirling dervish most of the time! Way too busy! However, there is an inward tendency to laziness that summer really seems to bring to the forefront. After my school year busyness that is non-stop, I pretty much have a hard time doing ANYTHING in the summer! { Can you tell??? } It’s one of the downsides of summer for me. I work so much more efficiently and with focus during the school year. Something about the relative inactivity of June, July, and August causes my brain to turn to mush.

Because I don’t have to get up at 5:00 a.m., I find it more difficult to get my morning time with the LORD! And that’s not good! In fact, right now it’s 9:55 p.m., and I’m only just finally sitting down to look back into Proverbs!

While the verses above seem to speak of physical laziness, it’s also referring to a spiritual sleepiness. It is so easy to fall into bad patterns of laziness with God and His Word. Satan will find 1000’s of things to keep us from opening our Bibles! The buzz of a text message, our favorite TV show, a compelling novel, or the “need” of just another hour of sleep! And we can find innumerable reasons NOT to join a Bible study. But if we give in to the temptation to do everything BUT read God’s Word, we will end up in poverty - with no food when we need it most!

God’s Word is unique in that it fills you up like nothing else. It is a bread that sticks to your ribs and becomes part of you. It mysteriously transforms you from the inside out. I’ve been studying it for 37 years now, and it never gets old. It is always fresh, timely, and pertinent. And as much as I LOVE it - I still have to consciously CHOOSE to open it. I have to fight the lazy bones in me to study it. So I definitely need to be held accountable to read it - and that’s why I’m a huge believer in organized Bible study. I need to have “homework” and the accountability of a group.

Which is why I’m going to urge you today to find a summer study or open your house to a study. And then, if you have never heard of Bible Study Fellowship or been afraid to commit to it, I’m going to HIGHLY recommend it for this fall! Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) is an international, interdenominational study (to check it out, click here‎) that meets all over the world (and probably in your area).

The study runs during the school year, from September to May. It’s in-depth, like a college course on the Bible, and there are eight studies, with a ninth (Revelation) being added in 2014 (this coming year is the Gospel of Matthew, a great place to start). They alternate between Old and New Testament, and trust me, after you have completed the series you will have learned more than a lifetime of random studies could give you. You will have a full picture of the Bible from beginning to end, with a clear understanding of how Jesus is revealed in all of it.

A bonus is their remarkable children’s program! Day classes have a children’s program for preschoolers, while the night classes have a school program for kids from first grade through high school. I was the Children’s Supervisor years ago in BSF, and I can tell you, it’s such an amazing place to ground your children in a love of God’s Word!There are men’s and women’s studies, so the whole family can participate. It is NOT for the sluggard! But the rewards are GREAT!

So, if you are like me, and have a tendency toward spiritual laziness, jump into a study - one with other believers who will encourage you in your pursuit of God. Pray with me that we will not let a day go by without meeting with God this summer and into the fall. Let’s reap a harvest! There will be plenty of time to sleep later!