Dear Rose Park,
Have you ever heard the phrase “idle hands are the devils workshop”? It’s a phrase I can remember being uttered at my grandparent’s home during the summer. Every summer I would visit Grandpa and Grandma Brinks in Kalamazoo, MI. They had a white house that sat at the end of Circlewood Drive. I would stay up late and watch cowboy movies (or good guy and bad guy movies as Grandpa called them), eat too much popcorn in the basement, hit too few golf balls at Milham Park Golf Club, and then undoubtedly spend time working with Grandpa in the lawn. It seemed as if he always saved projects for when I was visiting. Some days we would replace sod in his front lawn, other times I would edge along the curb and pull weeds in the garden but, on the best of days we would spend time caring for the small putting green he manicured in his backyard. Regardless of the project, my hands were rarely idle when I was with Grandpa and Grandma.
Essentially, what the phrase is trying to communicate is that when we are not busy the devil can find a way to make us busy with activities that dishonor God. Now before you think “not a problem here, I’m always busy” we’re not necessarily talking about busyness of schedule. I understand we all have busy schedules. We all have activities and responsibilities we tend to; however, are the activities you’re involved in God-honoring? Though your schedule is bombarded with events and your calendar is booked through the end of the month, are you honoring God through the meetings, appointments, lunches, and games? Or are those things separating you from God? On a side note, though idle hands can be the devils workshop – maybe for you, the devils workshop is in your busyness.
Here’s what the phrase is truly getting at: if idle hands are the devils workshop then our hands cannot be idle in our relationship with God. Just because we attend worship every Sunday doesn’t guarantee we have a strong relationship with God. Just because we tithe or volunteer to serve doesn’t guarantee we have a strong relationship with God. And just because we pray before our meals, wear a WWJD bracelet, or even choose certain schools over others doesn’t guarantee we have a strong relationship with God.
This coming Sunday we will witness five students profess their faith and one student embrace baptism. What a blessing God has given us; however, these opportunities are not the finish line of our faith. Our eyes need to be busy with the work of reading God’s Word, our ears need to be busy with the work of listening to God’s Spirit, our hands need to be busy with the work of serving God’s Church, our mouths need to be busy with the work of praying for God’s People, and our hearts need to be busy with the work of growing closer to God’s heart.
Because remember, idle hands are the devils workshop.
Grace & Peace,
Pastor Mark