‘Sluggard’ isn’t exactly a word we use much anymore – so, what does it mean? Basically, someone who wants things without the necessary work it’ll take to get them. But you’ll never convince a sluggard that they’re a sluggard. They won’t admit it. ‘The lazy man is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly’ (Proverbs 26:16 NKJV). You can tell a sluggard, but you can’t tell him much. ‘The desire of the lazy man kills him, for his hands refuse to labour’ (Proverbs 21:25 NKJV). Their two favourite words are ‘one day.’ ‘One day I’m going to make it big.’ Or, ‘One day I’m going to own my own business.’ Or, ‘One day I’m going to climb that mountain.’ The list is endless. And they always have an excuse for why they can’t do the work now. That’s what Solomon meant when he said: ‘The way of the lazy man is like a hedge of thorns, but the way of the upright is a highway’ (Proverbs 15:19 NKJV). When the sluggard looks out of the front door of life, they don’t see a pathway of opportunity, only a pathway full of obstacles. Benjamin Franklin said, ‘I never knew a man who was good at making excuses, who was good at anything else.’ Basically: the sluggard would rather make an excuse than make a life. When the Bible lays out wisdom like this, it’s never just for the sake of quiet reflection. It’s always to encourage us to act on that wisdom.

What now?

Today, for every excuse you make, remember it, and at the end of the day, decide against using it again.