Created for Work ~ Ch. 3 "Dangers of the Diligent"

Chapter 3 of Bob Schultz' book Created for Work is probably one of the most interesting chapters in the entire book, because it deals with a danger which is very real and destructive, but which few people think about.

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All of us know the dangers which accompany the slothful, so I need not name them. Suffice it to say that lazy man's path through life is full of pit-falls and snares from which few escape. But have you ever thought of what dangers accompany the diligent?

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Schultz opens the chapter with a quote by a man named William James. I'd never heard of him up to this point, but his words ring true for many successful people, especially in this day and age: "The moral flabbiness born of... success." Dangers - very real and destructive, as I said before - do beset the diligent, hard-working man, though they my be often different from those which the sluggard faces.

"Folks that care about their things," says Schultz, "tend to be more prosperous than those who don't. As their goods increase, there are more things to care for. In time, the fruits of the diligent can become the cares of this world, choking the word from their hearts. Deuteronomy 6 warns us that when our houses are full of good things and we have eaten and are full, 'Then beware lest thou forget the Lord.' It's our nature to get sidetracked by the things of this life, whether they come as gifts or from our hard work. The diligent must be on guard. Industrious workers face many temptations that slothful workers don't. A man careful in everyday affairs rises to places of leadership (see Proverbs 22:29). His character places him with rulers and he often becomes one himself. As the head and not the tail, he encounters a new set of temptations ordinary workers don't (see Proverbs 23:1-2)."

Schultz goes on to explain that "most men do not reach their full potential until later in life." God works in them over time, developing them and building their attitudes, talents, and often resources too. "There's a time when all that you have learned, all that you have earned, and all that you are comes side by side with the needs of others." God must take us to a certain level of maturity first, and then He will provide us with the opportunity to go and use those talents for His glory - whether it's teaching, writing, carpentry, or farming. Yet as we set out in the world as workers for God, we must take care we do not become workers of mammon. As Schultz said, when a person becomes successful and rises to authority, he must battle temptations which the lazy man doesn't have to deal with. Abundance of worldly riches and power - while they have many advantages and benefits - can be tools in the devil's hands which he will use to turn people from the paths of righteousness.

There are examples in the Bible of men who had power and used it either for good or ill. Schultz lists some - Nehemiah, who was initially cup bearer to the king, arose to the occasion when the time came, and led his people in rebuilding Jerusalem's broken walls. Caleb also, who endured forty years in the wilderness with a complaining people, remained faithful to God and was prepared when it came time to conquer and subdue the mountains of Hebron. King David, however, a faithful follower of the Lord through so many hard times, let his guard slip once and used his power for lustful purposes which caused him great sorrow throughout the remainder of his days. Think also of Solomon - true to the Lord for a time, but who eventually followed the gods of his unbelieving wives. Jesus, the supreme example, never for once used His almighty power for selfish purposes. Instead, He chose to redeem us by allowing Himself to be crucified on our behalf that we might someday live eternally with Him. Many, many are the examples found in history of men and women who used their gifts either to the glory of their Maker or for their own sinful pleasure.

Schultz reminds us that "the grand quality of diligence, which is essential when you begin working, turns a man into a workaholic if not balanced. The freedoms that bless the industrious become snares when given to selfish pleasure. The diligent are tempted to forget God, trust in riches and look down on the poor. What once was the reward of hard work quickly transforms into the resources to fulfill the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Be on guard."

This principle not only applies to the physical, but to the spiritual as well. Think about it. A Christian who is diligent in the Scriptures and following hard after the Lord, will, if he is not careful, find that the devil will twist even these good virtues, and use them to his detriment. The Christian may become conceited in the fact that he thinks he is better than the murderer in the jail cell, instead of feeling an overwhelming sense of humble gratitude that the grace of God has redeemed him from the misery and torment of sin. He may become self-seeking, and trust in his own merit rather than in the merit of Christ Jesus. What once were godly qualities become marred, twisted, and defaced - and all because that Christian lets his guard down for a moment.

As he ends the chapter, Schultz states, "Like Jesus, Nehemiah,and Caleb, your season to produce fruit will come. When it does, may you be the man who refuses the cares, riches, and pleasures of life. May you be one who in an honest and good heart, hears the Word, diligently keeps it and by the God's grace brings forth a bountiful harvest one hundred fold (see 2 Peter 1:5-11)."

"Remove me far from vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, 'Who is the Lord?', or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain." Proverbs 30:8-9

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Persevero,

Scribe