The other morning, I spent time catching up on something I had put off. I had put it off for a long time. As a matter of fact, so long that I would be embarrassed to admit just how long.
It felt wonderful to finally take care of it and be done. To have it done. The funny part is it didn’t even take a lot of my time.
Procrastination …
is the practice of carrying out less urgent tasks in preference to more urgent ones, or doing more pleasurable things in place of less pleasurable ones, and thus putting off impending tasks to a later time, sometimes to the “last minute” before a deadline. (thank you, wikipedia)
We put things off in the hopes of … what? That it goes away? It will be easier to do? We will have more time later?
Procrastination is not a new problem. Scripture has some advice to offer:
“Don’t put it off; do it now! Don’t rest until you do it. Save yourself like a gazelle escaping from a hunter, like a bird fleeing from a net.” (Proverbs 6:4-5, NLT)
“Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring.” (Proverbs 27:1, NLT)
Putting it off until tomorrow will not make it any easier. It’s like putting a noose around your neck. The more the clock ticks, the tighter the noose becomes until the task is unavoidable and overwhelming. It begins to strangle, sapping the energy needed and all motivation to get the task done.
We cannot count on having the time on another day as we do not know what tomorrow will bring us. We have no control over any day but the present.
Piglet, from Hundred Acre Woods put it this way:
“I think,” said Piglet, when he had licked the tip of his nose too, and found that it brought very little comfort, “I think that I have just remembered something. I have just remembered something that I forgot to do yesterday and shan’t be able to do tomorrow. So I suppose I really ought to go back and do it now.” (from http://www.winnie-pooh.org/piglet-quotes.htm)
So what it is that you have been putting off?
Don’t put it off any longer.
Just do it!
Today I am joining … Three Word Wednesday and Tell His Story and Women With Intention and Wedded Wednesday .
You are so right…it feels SO good to finally do whatever I’ve been putting off! š I will try to keep this in mind as I try not to keep putting off putting up my fall decorations! Thanks for the pep-talk…stopping by from Works for Me Wednesday/Three Word Wednesday!
Afterwards I always wonder – why did I wait so long to do it š May you enjoy your fall decorations š
I am so guilty of this and some how I am consciously and deliberately fighting the urge to put things off.Relationships amongst many other things especially suffer when we procrastinate.
Thanks for shring this with us, especially the verses in Proverbs 6. in the NLT. I need to meditate on them.
So grateful His Word spoke to you, Ugochi. May we fight against procrastination so that our lives honor Him in all things. Blessings!
Oh so true, Joanne! And more often than I’d like to admit. Thanks for finishing up with sweet Piglet …
You brought a needed smile.
Linda, I think Piglet can bring correction we may otherwise have resisted š So glad he made you smile. Blessings!
very good post
Thank you, Denise, for the encouragement!
Lovely words. As I was reading the definition for procrastination I smiled to myself when reading “doing more pleasurable things in place of less pleasurable things”. I have found myself in that position too many times and it just makes it harder when you finally face it. Yay for Piglet’s wisdom today. Blessings and hugs!
Mary, even though I think what I am doing is more pleasurable, so many times I later think, “It wasn’t worth it.” Grateful that Piglet can speak into our lives this week š
God is so good and gives us exactly what we need to hear even when we don’t even realize we need it!
This spoke volumes to me for myself and as a parent loving on my kids. We need to realize and actually name those weaknesses so that we may truly own them and then we can hopefully grow and make better choices and possibly turn it into a strength since we know it is a truth in us. (not sure if this makes sense to anyone but me!)
As always love your thoughts that ring so true and am so blessed by you!
Blessings to you and your sweet family!
Jen, it always is good to see you here! I am glad this post spoke to you. And you are right, God always knows what we need to hear. May you have a blessed Sunday!
I am a conflicted procrastinator. My nature is not to procrastinate and for the most part I don’t. It usually bugs me until the hard things is just over with.
But as I get older, there are times that I surprise myself and procrastinate. I loved your insight questions to ask ourselves which are so true when it comes to procrastination.i
Thanks for sharing!
Karen, I am usually like you – something will nag at me until I get it done. But then there are those times, that I do put something off & find it truly would have been better to just get it done. Grateful you visited!
I do this with the dishwasher! I will let it sit there and sit there while the dishes pile up in the sink, but then when I do unload it I remember it takes no time at all to do so! I don’t procrastinate much, but for some reason I do there continually. š I always love your encouragement and presence at #ThreeWordWednesday.
Kristin, you put off dishes – I put off ironing š May we each just keep up with that which we put off. I so enjoy joining you each week!