“We want each of you to show the same diligence

so as to realize the full assurance of hope to the very end.”

–Hebrews 6:11

Without even counting two full-time vocational chapters, my working life has been quite diverse. During the summers between school years I bagged groceries and mowed grass, worked as a lifeguard and bank teller. While a student at Davidson, my work-study job included swapping out newspapers and magazines in the library six days a week. I also washed dishes in my fraternity house.  And the three months between those sophomore and junior years I put air in tractor trailer tires for a trucking company.  

Each of those job-related skills still come in handy. I like to bag my own groceries and mow our lawn, keep track of our money and will lounge by the pool, ever ready to jump in if required. I still read the newspaper first thing every morning (online), usually wash the dishes in our home, and have a portable air pump on standby.  

Yet then there was my first job.  

At age 16, I worked one summer for an ice and coal company.  Thus, despite living in the Deep South, where the average temperature was in the high 90s and the humidity not much lower, I had to dress for sub-freezing temperatures. It was physically demanding work, too. One of my tasks was to drag 300 pound slabs of ice across the floor. Using an ice pick, I would then break the block into smaller ones of 100 or 50 pounds and tie a string around them for easier transport. What was left went into a crusher to fill bags for customers. Since I wasn’t the strongest of employees, I would tire quickly and often get delegated to working outside, picking up trash or pulling weeds.  Even shedding a few layers of clothes didn’t help make me comfortable.

The worst part of the job, though, was my boss. He was a humorless man who must have graduated from the Ebenezer Scrooge School of Management.  The door that led into the ice room had a little window covered by a flap. Periodically during the day I would look over and see him peering in to see if we were working. As if we would stand idle in the cold! When we took our legally-mandated breaks, he would hover nearby looking at his watch. A few days, he greeted us at the door upon arrival to announce he didn’t need us. That fun earned me $2 per hour. While that is the equivalent of nearly $13 today, it was not nearly enough to get me back the following summer.

I thought of that experience when I began pondering the last of the heavenly/deadly traits: diligence and sloth. The term “sloth” is another one on this list that isn’t used much these days. If you pull out a King James Version of the Bible, though, there are many citations. 

Sloth is a big concern in the Book of Proverbs. Among its ten-plus references are the following gems: “Go to the ant thy sluggard; consider her ways and be wise.” (6:6) “The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing, but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.” (13:4) “The way of the slothful man is thorns, but the way of the righteous is made plain.” (15:19)   

In the New International Version, the preacher of Ecclesiastes declares “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working or planning or knowledge or wisdom.” (9:10).  I suspect my ice company boss had a framed cross-stitch of those words on his desk!  

All of those verses contrast diligence and sloth as it relates to one’s physical labor. In the New Testament, though, those traits also appear as an analogy for eternal matters.

“Whatever your task,” Paul encouraged the Christians of Colossae, “put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord and not for your masters.” (3:23). To the Galatians he urged “let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time if we do not give up.” (6:9). Certainly both of those occasions speak of actual work, but they also connect such diligence to the promise of faith. And then there is a message of encouragement from Hebrews.

It comes roughly halfway through the letter.  The author has been speaking about the priestly role of Christ when he offers what my study Bible calls a digression. I would argue it is actually a continuation of his already-cited purpose. As he wants to impress upon those readers the importance of persevering in loyal obedience to God.  His words contain the only NT time when the term “sloth” is used.

“We want each of you to show the same diligence,” the writer says “so as to realize the full assurance of hope to the end, so that you may not become sluggish [slothful], but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (6:11-12). I like the way that believer connects diligence with hope based upon having seen such faithfulness in others. Most of us can probably see ways we could grow in being more diligent in life and faith. I suspect we can also recognize the times or settings when we can be a bit slothful.  I know that I can.  Recalling those who seem to get it right can be helpful in moving us toward the desired trait.

Thus, wherever you are on the sloth-diligence continuum today, the author of Hebrews invites you and me to picture the person whose diligence most inspires. The woman, man or child who by their own example motivate us to offer our best in the circumstances we face right now. Who are the individuals with that kind of impact on you?  I’d love to hear about them in your comments to this post. Not only do I enjoy your accounts, but it can also spread that person’s influence with others.

I will give thought to that question for myself, even as I have recalled for you one who had just the opposite effect on me. He was last seen peering into an ice room! 

Ever-faithful Lord, you never rest in your care of and love for me. While I cannot emulate that kind of diligence in every moment, help me this day to remain steady in whatever task you have placed before me. And to do the same thing tomorrow. And the day after that. Amen.