Weekly Devotional 21st November, 2025
by Bruce Billington
Weekly Devotional 21st November, 2025
In this session, we will continue to look at Proverbs Chapter Six.
Proverbs 6:6-8 – “Go to the ant, O sluggard, Observe her ways and be wise, 7 Which, having no chief, Officer, or ruler, 8 Prepares her food in the summer and gathers her provisions in the harvest.”
Solomon, in these verses, speaks to the sluggard who prefers comfort, lives in idleness, refuses to work, sticks to nothing, achieves nothing, and is especially careless about his devotional matters. Slothfulness is a sure road to poverty, so he warns the sluggard accordingly.
We can learn from the tiniest insects, lessons that will serve us well throughout our lives. We are advised to observe the ways of the ant, which involves taking lessons from them and emulating their behaviour.
The main lesson is that we should plan for the future instead of using all our resources now and ending up without a plan for what’s to come. If we remain physically capable, we should save food and money that could be useful if we lose the ability to do so at any point in our lives.
Of course, this seems like basic common sense, yet many fall short of it and live for the day, succumbing to the temptation of laziness—like sleeping instead of working. As we have mentioned before, this does not mean we should never rest: God instructs us to take one day off a week, but we should not rest when we should be working. The ant is used as an example because it uses its energy and resources efficiently. If laziness leads us to neglect our responsibilities, poverty might well be the result, and this will surely deprive us of the legitimate rest we are meant to enjoy.
Scripture is strict about laziness and neglecting our duty to earn a living. It states that if we don’t work, we shouldn’t eat (2 Thessalonians 3:11). The writer here has no patience for those who refuse to work. He sounds very much like the parents of teenagers or the wives of husbands as he exclaims, “How much longer are you going to lie in bed? Are you ever going to get up?” (Verse 9)! Most parents of teenagers will be able to relate to this.
While we might all have a laugh at this, laziness remains a serious character flaw and contradicts all biblical teachings. The inability to work without supervision reveals a significant character defect. We should all aim to cultivate a strong work ethic and perform our duties as if serving the Lord, not just our boss or overseer (Colossians 3:23). Are these qualities visible in us as representatives of God’s people on earth? What about taking sick days when we’re well, or consistently arriving late, taking extended breaks, or, when working from home, clocking in while attending to personal matters instead of fulfilling our work responsibilities?
It is a sad statement if we are heard to boast about getting by in our jobs by doing as little as possible or constantly criticising or demeaning our employers. It may seem admirable now, but it won’t if we remember that we will all stand before the Lord at the end of this age and give account to Him about our heart attitude to the job we have been given, as well as what we produced. We would do well to remember that He sees this as how we treated Him, not our boss, when we are working (Matthew 25:40).
It seems fitting here to remind us that God has a calling in life for all of us, which particularly manifests in our work (Ephesians 2:10). If we feel our job doesn’t align with this calling, we should seek God’s guidance on whether to start looking and applying for a different job or type of work.
Whatever we do, let’s be reminded of what Paul shares in Colossians.
Colossians 3:32 – “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men.”
God bless you.