Proverbs 18:9

The book of Proverbs gives us insights into so many different areas of life. The book gives us instruction on how to live our lives for God. Here is a proverb that gives us insight about lazy people.  

Proverbs 18:9 (ESV)

Whoever is slack in his work

is a brother to him who destroys.

Some things go hand in hand.   Ice cream and chocolate comes to mind as a dynamic duo.    Peanut butter and chocolate.  Those would be an example of a positive combination.   In this proverb, however, we have a negative duo we should be aware of.   When there is someone in the work force who doesn't do their job, or completes their task(s), Solomon tells us we can expect destruction to follow.   Slack work will destroy good morale.   Slack work will destroy excellence.   Followers who are slack in their work will destroy leadership.    Slackness produces weakness and destroys strength.   Solomon doesn't give us more than this but just let's us know that you can't have one without the other.   If you want to end deficiency within an organization you need to correct the efficiency.   If you correct laziness you will also correct destructiveness.  The one introduces and feeds the other.  Leadership has to have a way to correct those who are “slack” in their work.   Laziness always destroys the organization that allows it to breath.   Perhaps this is why Paul did not want young John Mark to go with him and Barnabas on their second missionary journey.   Paul remembered that John Mark deserted them on the first missionary journey.   He may have thought he “departed” them because of his lack of work ethic.  We don’t know why.  We are not told why.   He could have thought that John Mark was “slack” in his work.   Whatever happens with us, we can be sure that slackness produces destruction.  It is important for those who work with those with a slack hand to know how to deal with these “brothers” (slack work and destructive worker).   We have to stop the former to avoid or limit the latter.   Wisdom knows to stop the slack work so that we don’t have any destructive work.