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| Photo Credit: Hannah Harman |
If you’re like me you know that procrastination tastes like
coffee and junk food sometime after midnight.
It feels like winning an Olympic event, as you suddenly crank out in an hour what you had been trying to do for a week.
It feels like winning an Olympic event, as you suddenly crank out in an hour what you had been trying to do for a week.
It looks like running to class in sweat pants because you
ran out of time to leave early and to get ready.
Procrastination is kind of a joke and often is seen as a
part of the college experience; It doesn’t have the stigma of other destructive habits.
Reality
People don’t talk about the agony of grabbing hold of each
minute that is slipping away, the exhaustion as assignments turn into
incoherent words and numbers, or the hopelessness of knowing that it is
physically impossible to complete a task on time.
Procrastination is really laziness. It compromises standards
of excellence.
It steals precious time and holds uncompleted tasks over its
prisoners’ heads.
Diligence is the opposite of laziness.
In his book, “Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life”,
Donald Whitney quoted Elisabeth Elliot as saying,
“…in fact freedom is not the opposite [of discipline], but the final reward, of discipline.”
It is freedom to take on a demanding task in manageable increments.
It is freedom to complete a task on time.
It is freedom to know you did your best.
It is freedom to be able to say that something is already
done.
How to Avoid Procrastination:
1. Be organized so you can prioritize.
2. Do hard things first.
(“All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk
leads only to poverty.” Proverbs 14:23)
3. Avoid a;sldkfj syndrome.
(Being bored,
distracted, and unproductive. Google it.)
4. Rely on Christ.
(“For the Spirit God gave us does
not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” 2
Timothy 1:7)
3. Avoid a;sldkfj syndrome.
4. Rely on Christ.
My Journey
Nike says we can just do it.
Maybe some people can.
For me, though, it’s not been that easy.
I procrastinate less than I used to, but it’s been a long
road of God’s grace and teaching.
I’ve learned that He has called us to greater things than
wasting time.
And He has set us free from all sin, including laziness.
“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.” Ephesians 5:15-17
