--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the devil can’t steal your soul, he’ll…" description: "\"“If the devil can’t steal your soul, he’ll just keep you busy doing meaningless church work.”\" — Shane Claiborne" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32c/shane-claiborne-960_devil_if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll_2537973.png" --- # If the devil can’t steal your soul, he’ll just keep you… ![“If the devil can’t steal your soul, he’ll just keep you busy doing meaningless church work.” quote by Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32c/shane-claiborne-960_devil_if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll_2537973.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32c/shane-claiborne-960_devil_if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll_2537973.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32c/shane-claiborne-960_devil_if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll_2537973.png) > ““If the devil can’t steal your soul, he’ll just keep you busy doing meaningless church work.”” [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When spiritual pursuits become empty tasks, they distract from true purpose and deeper faith. **In simple terms:** Busy work can hide a lack of meaning. Key Takeaway Focus on purposeful, heartfelt service. Themes faith purpose work distraction Mood contemplative serious Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - church volunteering - daily routines - community projects - personal devotion Key Concepts spiritual emptiness authenticity Questions to Reflect On - Are your activities truly reflective of your beliefs? - How can you transform routine work into meaningful practice? A Different Perspective Busy tasks may still foster growth if aligned with values. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) ## Related quotes > [What God seals the devil can't steal!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-moores/what-god-seals-the-devil-can-t-steal/) [Sarah Moores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-moores/) > [“When you see people doing meaningless things, you must remind yourself that it is easier for people to do meaningless things than doing meaningful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/when-you-see-people-doing-meaningless-things-you-must-remind-yourself/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [It's not the imbalances of life that will get you down-it's doing meaningless things that aren't taking you where you want to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/it-s-not-the-imbalances-of-life-that-will-get-you-down-it-s-doing/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [You could spend or waste your time doing meaningless things; or you could invest your time in order to achieve maximum eternal impact.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-williams/you-could-spend-or-waste-your-time-doing-meaningless-things-or-you/) [Craig Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-williams/) > [Whenever you do something without asking yourself, "Why am I doing this?"-that is meaningless life... . The "why" of life makes it meaningful... .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hu-shih/whenever-you-do-something-without-asking-yourself-why-am-i-doing-this/) [Hu Shih](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hu-shih/) > [“There is no use trying to do Church work without love. A doctor, a lawyer, may do good work without love, but God's work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-l-moody/there-is-no-use-trying-to-do-church-work-without-love-a-doctor-a/) [D.L. Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-l-moody/) > [The only sure rule is to remember that the Bible is indeed God's gift to the church, to equip that church for its work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-sure-rule-is-to-remember-that-the-bible-is-indeed-god-s-gift/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I mean, so if I've talked to whites in City of Refuge, sometimes they'll wonder, "Why do we do things a certain way, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/i-mean-so-if-i-ve-talked-to-whites-in-city-of-refuge-sometimes-they/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [My religion is my most precious possession. Except for it, I could easily have become excessively occupied with industry. Sharing responsibility for church work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-romney/my-religion-is-my-most-precious-possession-except-for-it-i-could/) [George W. Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-romney/) > [I know that those of us who go into church work are to regard ourselves as servants, are to offer our lives as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/i-know-that-those-of-us-who-go-into-church-work-are-to-regard/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [“The women of this Church have work to do which, though different, is equally as important as the work that we do. Their work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-w-kimball/the-women-of-this-church-have-work-to-do-which-though-different-is/) [Spencer W. Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-w-kimball/) > [“First, an urban church’s work among the poor will be a significant mark of its validity. It is one of the “good deeds” that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/first-an-urban-church-s-work-among-the-poor-will-be-a-significant/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [Church work ought to be at its core the work of loving people like God loves them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hybels/church-work-ought-to-be-at-its-core-the-work-of-loving-people-like/) [Bill Hybels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hybels/) > [Missionary activity is not so much the work of the church as simply the Church at work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bosch/missionary-activity-is-not-so-much-the-work-of-the-church-as-simply/) [David Bosch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bosch/) > [“He doesn’t look people in the eye. He says that’s how someone can steal your soul. Amen to that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/he-doesn-t-look-people-in-the-eye-he-says-that-s-how-someone-can/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) ## More by Shane Claiborne > [“we can live without sex, but we cant live without love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/we-can-live-without-sex-but-we-cant-live-without-love/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [We're not church planters. We are community planters and, as we work in our communities, we join local churches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/we-re-not-church-planters-we-are-community-planters-and-as-we-work-in/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [There are some - called 'death fatigue' - people who just grow so tired of death, so they don't want to keep perpetuating death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/there-are-some-called-death-fatigue-people-who-just-grow-so-tired-of/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [Every 70-year-old needs a young person in their lives to mentor, and every 20-year-old needs a senior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/every-70-year-old-needs-a-young-person-in-their-lives-to-mentor-and/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [I just have a more holistic sense of what it means to be for life, knowing that life does not just begin at conception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/i-just-have-a-more-holistic-sense-of-what-it-means-to-be-for-life/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [It's not that hard to say slavery is wrong after we've abolished it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/it-s-not-that-hard-to-say-slavery-is-wrong-after-we-ve-abolished-it/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [We think of justice sometimes as getting what you deserve, you know - what crime was committed and what is the punishment for that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/we-think-of-justice-sometimes-as-getting-what-you-deserve-you-know/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [Mother Theresa said it is not how much we give that is important but how much love you put into doing it. So it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/mother-theresa-said-it-is-not-how-much-we-give-that-is-important-but/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [No one has seen God, but as we love one another, God lives in us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/no-one-has-seen-god-but-as-we-love-one-another-god-lives-in-us/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [“If you find yourself climbing the ladder of success, be careful or else on your way up you might pass Jesus on his way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/if-you-find-yourself-climbing-the-ladder-of-success-be-careful-or/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [We need good laws, but no law can change a human heart - only God can do that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/we-need-good-laws-but-no-law-can-change-a-human-heart-only-god-can-do/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [We're remembering each other's heroes, too. We are learning each other's songs. We are reminding ourselves that we are a global family praying together.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/we-re-remembering-each-other-s-heroes-too-we-are-learning-each-other/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [There is a certain power when old and young come together - we can do more together than we can on our own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/there-is-a-certain-power-when-old-and-young-come-together-we-can-do/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [You can't really learn God's hope like you learn the logic of an argument or the details of a story. It's more like learning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/you-can-t-really-learn-god-s-hope-like-you-learn-the-logic-of-an/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [“Clarence Jordan, co-founder of Koinonia Farm, wrote, “The Good News of the resurrection is not that we shall die and go home with him,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/clarence-jordan-co-founder-of-koinonia-farm-wrote-the-good-news-of/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) [Explore all 319 Shane Claiborne quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) ## More Devil quotes > [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/) Michael Arnold > [Alimony - the ransom that the happy pay to the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/alimony-the-ransom-that-the-happy-pay-to-the-devil/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“Beauty is not only a terrible thing, it is also a mysterious thing. There God and the Devil strive for mastery, and the battleground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/beauty-is-not-only-a-terrible-thing-it-is-also-a-mysterious-thing/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [You gonna take the case?" It's not a case. It's a missing person. Sort of." You're gonna have a devil of a time finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/you-gonna-take-the-case-it-s-not-a-case-it-s-a-missing-person-sort-of/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [Your head's like mine, like all our heads; big enough to contain every god and devil there ever was. Big enough to hold the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/your-head-s-like-mine-like-all-our-heads-big-enough-to-contain-every/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [And so it is, that both the Devil and the angelic Spirit present us with objects of desire to awaken our power of choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/and-so-it-is-that-both-the-devil-and-the-angelic-spirit-present-us/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Remember that Abraham Lincoln was a Whig far longer than he was a Republican. As a whole, the Whigs looked upon banks and corporations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-c-guelzo/remember-that-abraham-lincoln-was-a-whig-far-longer-than-he-was-a/) [Allen C. Guelzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-c-guelzo/) > [Wine is the first weapon that devils use in attacking the young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-jerome/wine-is-the-first-weapon-that-devils-use-in-attacking-the-young/) [St. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-jerome/) > [“I tend to agree with that little devil more and more these days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-casey/i-tend-to-agree-with-that-little-devil-more-and-more-these-days/) [Elle Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-casey/) > [This is the gift of your species and this is the danger, because you do not choose to control your imaginings. You imagine wonderful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/this-is-the-gift-of-your-species-and-this-is-the-danger-because-you/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [“The devil?” Jason heaved the tick over his shoulder like a collier with his sack. “Satan. The adversary. The enemy of the plan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-devil-jason-heaved-the-tick-over-his-shoulder-like-a-collier-with/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [God never talks. But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/god-never-talks-but-the-devil-keeps-advertising-father-the-devil-does/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [If it was a sin for you to choose me . . . then I would go to the Devil himself and bless him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/if-it-was-a-sin-for-you-to-choose-me-then-i-would-go-to-the-devil/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist”—Charles Baudelaire “The second greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/the-greatest-trick-the-devil-ever-pulled-was-convincing-the-world-he/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) [Browse all 4,283 Devil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If the devil can’t steal your soul, he’ll just keep you busy doing meaningless church work.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Shane Claiborne" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll-just-keep-you-busy-doing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Devil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll-just-keep-you-busy-doing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32c/shane-claiborne-960_devil_if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll_2537973.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32c/shane-claiborne-960_devil_if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll_2537973.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32c/shane-claiborne-960_devil_if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll_2537973.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If the devil can’t steal your soul, he’ll just keep you busy doing meaningless church work.” — Shane Claiborne", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Shane Claiborne", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“If the devil can’t steal your...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll-just-keep-you-busy-doing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/if-the-devil-can-t-steal-your-soul-he-ll-just-keep-you-busy-doing/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```