There is a big difference between risk aversion and laziness. 

Some people have such a conservative nature that they loathe losing something important by adding any measure of risk to increase the value of what they already have. This is caution, not laziness. 

Sloth, not the unhurried animal, is one of the Seven Deadly Sins in Catholic theology. It is characterized by habitual indolence. It is an object at rest determined to stay at rest. As the song says, it is the person who “ain’t got no motivation.”

The One-Share Employee demonstrates for us the Lazybones Persona. The Five-Share Employee “began to invest the money and earned five more,” (verse 16). The Two-Share Employee “went to work and earned two more,” (verse 17). 

Two of the three employees went to work and doubled what was entrusted to them. The other employee thought good enough was good enough. His effort consisted of A) digging a hole, B) dropping the bag of money in the hole, and C) covering up the hole. Then he took a few days off along with a well-deserved, in his mind, vacation and enjoyed the security of knowing he wasn’t losing a dime of his employer’s money.

The employer knew the abilities of his three employees. He distributed his wealth to them according to their abilities. He knew the Five-Share Employee was going to do something good. He knew the Two-Share Employee would perform similarly. He also knew the One-Share Employee was the least capable of the three. Why did he bother giving him anything at all?

The employer gave this employee an opportunity to turn his life around. Here was the chance for a fresh start. He could take the conservative route and at least place the money on deposit in the bank and earn simple interest. Even such a meager return would have been acceptable. Yet the One-Share Employee didn’t even live up to his limited capacity. He made things harder than they had to be. He lost everything. (See verses 28-30.)

Listen to Jesus as he gives us the bottom line on how to live a life of maximized life:

“To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away,” (verse 29).

Manage well what God entrusts to you and he will bless you with more to manage.

Do nothing with what God entrusts to you and he will take away what little you have left. 

Sloth is a deadly sin, isn’t it? It is also entirely preventable. Get up. Get moving. Manage what you have in a manner that honors God and serves others. God will increase your capacity and celebrate your success.

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I will steward well what God places in my hands.

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Our Father, I will return to you the first ten percent of all you entrust to me. I will use the skills and abilities you give me to earn all that I can. I will give all that I can so that others may have what they need. I will save all that I can so that I am not a burden on others. I will make wise spending decisions so that I get the best bang for the buck. Amen.