"Paycheck"

Just a cowboy, no more and no less,

But he likes to make money, I guess.

So he lends them his reins and his face,

You’ll see it all over the place.

Selling something a cowboy would wear,

And the paycheck they send is right there,

Is more than he’d make in three weeks,

That’s why those commercials he seeks.

So he can just saddle and go,

Long ‘fore they wake up and know,

Think they’re not through using him,

When in fact the old boy’s using them.

We’ve all done some things we had to,

To pay all our bills, haven’t you,

But with a cowboy it’s more than a fact,

That it’s uphill to get what you lack.

So if someone asks you for a pic,

Go on and let ‘em, old slick.

‘Cause you never know where it might lead,

That check might be just what you need.

“Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you….” (1 Thessalonians 4:11, NIV)

Leading a quiet life and working to earn money to pay your own way are spiritual principles taught by Paul. The so-called work ethic is a strand of truth that runs through scripture, and is taught in both the Old and New Testaments. It is the opposite of an entitlement mentality where people think they are somehow owed a check they haven’t worked for. I’ve prayed with many people over financial needs. But we always include the request that God will open a door for people to work and earn and pay their own way. God will energize these choices.

Lord, help us to generate the income we need by working on the jobs You provide, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Shawn Cameron, used by permission. Thanks, Shawn, and God bless you.