“Excuses! Excuses!
February 26, 2023
We all have faced the challenge of getting out of something we simply do not want to do. Whether it is going to work, going out with friends, attending a social event, going out is just not that appealing. As a result, we may search for a good excuse to bail out of going out. Many websites exist which offer ideas as to how to give tried, but not necessarily true, excuses.
Some of the top ten excuses, for getting out of doing something you do not want to do, include:
- Traffic
- Migraine
- Car trouble
- Medical emergency
- Covid
- Food poisoning
- No one home to watch my dog
Probably no excuse can top that of the sluggard, or lazy man, in Proverbs 26:13 – “The sluggard says, ‘There is a lion in the road! There is a lion in the streets!’” Instead of being diligent, or behaving responsibly, the sluggard blames an external hindrance. There is a lion in the road, and a fierce one at that, so there is no way he can go outside. As a result, the sluggard is like a door that turns on its hinge.
As a door turns on its hinges, so does a sluggard on his bed. – Proverbs 26:14
The only turning the lazy man does is on his bed, just like the door turns on its hinge. In both cases, the lazy man and the door may turn, but they are not going anywhere. Excuses! Excuses!
What might be the antidote to the excuses of the sluggard? A starting point is found in Proverbs 6:6-9,
6Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise.
7 Without having any chief, officer, or ruler,
8 she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.
9 How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?
The ant does her work when the work needs to be done, and she does not need a supervisor overseeing her diligence. Like the ant, we have work to do and life to live. No more excuses!