“He who watches the wind [waiting for all conditions to be perfect] will not sow [seed], and he who looks at the clouds will not reap [a harvest].” (Ecclesiastes 11:4 The Amplified Bible)
This is not a lesson on agriculture, it is a lending of advice to help you all throughout the week. It deals with procrastination. You know how we are. We say, “This is the week ‘m going to get a home improvement project done,” but we don’t do it. We say, “Today, I am not going to read God’s word more,” but do we really do what we say? We make bold commitments with forthright statements about finishing a project, but months go by, and it fails to happen; at least not yet. We make mental notes in the mind and make some noise out of our mouths in regard to completing all our things to do ahead of schedule. However, we amend our schedule by abandoning that priority and we prolong the completion of things without even considering the fact that we are procrastinating. Oh, and don’t mention the mess we vowed to clean up, the messy relationship issues we vowed to make right, or the messed-up closet that we were going to finally organize. How about those appointments that we postponed, more than once? Why are we still postponing projects; providing excuses and rationale to explain the delay? Sometimes, we say we are looking for the perfect time, the perfect moment, the perfect “extra money” or, we are “waiting” until we feel perfectly fine. But really, are we just procrastinating? We excuse ourselves because of cloudy outlooks, real and figurative, and thus we delay doing what we should be doing to get the results we desire. Are we not procrastinating?
Last week I set a goal of getting everything done by Friday, in order that I could enjoy my one partial off day, Saturday. Working diligently and fulfilling all my assignments, including the morning meditations drafts for Sunday and this morning, I found myself with a free Saturday afternoon and evening. I benefitted greatly, found time to do things I usually do not get to do on Saturdays. I told procrastination, “Not gonna happen this week. I’m getting everything done before Saturday.”
Every now and then I give you a theme for the week; one that you can apply at work, at home, in regard to church, or even in regard to making changes in your life with the guidance of God. As I started out saying, I am lending you some advice to help you throughout the week. Here is the theme and I want you to recall it, repeat it, and revive it any time that procrastination tries to pay you a visit and prevent you from getting things done. Tell procrastination this week, every day, “Not gonna happen!” Go ahead an do your thing and do it in a godly manner. Enjoy your week and remember, “Not gonna happen!” Be blessed!
“Don’t procrastinate – there’s no time to lose.” (Proverbs 6:4 MSG)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King