None of the Secrets of Success Will Work Unless You Do
Let’s be honest: you can’t fulfill your destiny on a theory—it takes work. If theories worked, I’d be thin from thinking about dieting. But just as the Lord reminded Joshua, “Arise, go over this Jordan…” (Joshua 1:2), God expects us to get up, put on the shoes, and start walking.
You were made for action. Sitting still is so unnatural that even toddlers rebel—and many adults, if Sunday sermons are any indication. Success is good ideas dressed in work clothes. James 2:17 says, “Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” As I’ve heard, “Prayers are good—but don’t expect God to vacuum your living room.”
Shakespeare nailed it: “Nothing can come of nothing.” And Paul echoed him centuries earlier with, “If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10).
David Bly observed, “Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven’t planted.” Even the Bible agrees, “A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing” (Proverbs 20:4). In modern terms: you can’t binge-watch your way into greatness.
Talking about success without acting on it is like me discussing how I could run a marathon—if only the marathon were several feet shorter, downhill, and equipped with snack stations every three minutes. Words are cheap. Action is priceless.
The truth is, laziness doesn’t just slow you down; it races you straight into poverty. Proverbs says it plainly: “A little sleep, a little slumber… and poverty will come on you like a bandit” (Proverbs 6:10-11).
Some people do things. Others make endless charts, diagrams, and calendars. The world is divided into these two groups. Be the one who acts, not just the one who plans. There’s less competition.
God didn’t burden us with work; He blessed us with it. Adam was put in the Garden “to work it and keep it” (Genesis 2:15) even before sin entered the world. Work is not punishment.
Molière said, “All men are alike in their promises; it is only in their deeds that they differ.” Proverbs agrees: “In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty” (Proverbs 14:23). Wishing has never made a poor man wealthy, though a few have tried wishing until noon.
Robert Half put it perfectly: “Laziness is the secret ingredient that goes into failure, but it’s only kept a secret from the person who fails.” Proverbs 13:4 gives the biblical version: “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.”
Tell yourself—preferably out loud: “Inspiration never goes in for long engagements; it demands immediate marriage to action.” James would agree again: “Be doers of the word, and not hearers only” (James 1:22). If the truth were known, most of our troubles come from loafing when we should be lifting, waiting when we should be working, and talking when we should be listening.
Get to work. Do it faithfully, cheerfully if you can, and with caffeine if you need it. Set aside talk and start doing. Remember, none of the secrets of success will work unless you are willing to work, so act now and commit. Only action turns potential into achievement.