Proverbs 10:4 “Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.”

What an awesome verse in the Bible. If you truly believe this verse (which you should) then let’s break it down…

Lazy Hands

Notice that the Bible talks about our “hands.” This represents what we do, it is a matter of our work. So the verse is saying that when our work is lazy there is a problem. You may have heard of the famous “Footprints in the Sand” by Mary Stevenson. It is a great poem about God carrying us through life. I recently came across a somewhat different take on the poem that captures some truth in it, here it is…

One night I had a wondrous dream,
One set of footprints there was seen,
The footprints of my precious Lord,
But mine were not along the shore.

But then some stranger prints appeared,
And I asked the Lord, “What have we here?
Those prints are large and round and neat,
But Lord, they are too big for feet.”

“My child,” He said in somber tones,
“For miles I carried you alone.
I challenged you to walk in faith,
But you refused and made me wait.

“You disobeyed, you would not grow,
The walk of faith, you would not know,
So I got tired, I got fed up,
And there I dropped you on your butt.

“Because in life, there comes a time,
When one must fight, and one must climb,
When one must rise and take a stand,
Or leave their butt prints in the sand.”

~ Author Unknown

God created us for good works. He didn’t create us to be lazy and apathetic. Whatever work we are doing we are called to do it as worship to God.

Colossians 3:23

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters…

Make For Poverty

Lazy hands will produce or “make” as the Bible stats it poverty. Poverty is the natural byproduct of not working your land. Now I know that some things are out of our control in life and we get dealt a rough set of cards, but understand that we can fold and get a new hand if we choose to. The poverty the Bible is talking about is not just financial. It is a spiritual, physical, and emotional poverty that many people are trapped in as well. Poverty is a mind-set not a number. It is the belief that there is not enough and there is no hope. But God operates on an abundance mind-set that says, there is always a way, and He is more than enough. In this verse the Bible is saying that lazy hands ALWAYS results in some sort of POVERTY. So if you want to change from being impoverished start to change what you do. You will never change your outcome until you change what you do.

But

I love this BUT… You see, there is always a way out of poverty. There is always hope for the hopeless. There is always a way in the wilderness. This “but” is the hinge on which change occurs. You can either sit on your “but” or you can say, “‘but’ things are going to change!” It is our choice to make a change. God has already given us the tools and principles to live by and make a change, but we must choose to use them and live by them. This “but” is the turning point of an attitude change. Lazy hands make for poverty…BUT…I will not accept that or live by that. Make sure you always say “but” after a negative thought or word. You may tell yourself, “I am not good enough.” Then you need to catch yourself and start to declare, “But I have been bought at a price and am destined for greater things!” Don’t agree with your self-limiting beliefs and make arguments for your shortcomings.

Diligent Hands

This is where we must understand that God calls us to work and WORK HARD at what we do. We can’t become apathetic and give up on our journey. Diligent hands is about living with purpose and intentionality. We must wake up every morning and set out to make a difference with our life. It is the person who lives diligently in their efforts that experience all that God has to offer. In a culture that wants handouts we must understand that it is OUR responsibility to get our hands out and get going! In my book “Life Rules” the 2nd rule to live by is “CONTRIBUTE more than you CONSUME.” This is about a no-entilement mentality. Poverty looks for help, but diligence is the help.

Bring Wealth

Again, the natural byproduct of diligent hands is WEALTH. When you put your hand to the plow and begin working the land God has called you to, you WILL produce a harvest. Notice that when your hands are diligent it “brings” wealth. Opportunity will come to you when you step out and get going. You can’t wait for it as though someone will give it to you, you must go after it. Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” Wealth is not a number, it is a fulfilled life. You don’t have to have lots of money to be wealthy, in fact, some of the wealthiest people on earth do not have an abundance of finances. Wealth is about living with purpose and value. The great thing is that when you are diligent in your work you will become a wealthy person according to God’s word.