Greetings!
Are you a procrastinator?
Research reveals
that the Millennial & Gen-Z generations are first in line for the label, “
The culture of procrastination
.”
Procrastination is the action of delaying
, or postponing, an activity assigned to you by yourself or others, or even by God. The leading consequence of procrastination is that you miss the mark on the timeline in which the activity was scheduled to occur. This isn’t just the timeline that you set out to do for yourself in order to accomplish your to-do-list or action list. You are literally missing the key activation points on God’s timeline.
I think the normal modality and way of thinking for people today is that we really do pray and function in such a way that assumes God joins us where we’re at work. You can set your timeline any way that you want, and God will join you there. The deception is believing you’ll see a manifestation of the Holy Spirit, an outpouring of God in your scheduling or Body Life activity that is birthed through your own timeline. This is the standard of functioning for most “Christians,” saved or not.
Many responsible believers take time to
lay out their week on Mondays, even though this is not the responsible thing to do. It’s best to lay out the following week during the week you are currently in. You don’t close shop on Friday until your next week is completely planned. This helps to avoid the surprises carefully planned by the enemy.
For years, I have had a compulsive habit of having my bags packed, everything completed, with all the boxes checked two days before I leave on a trip. Inevitably the day before I leave, the enemy comes in and throws distractions in my path, which consume most of my day. Therefore, the following day I would feel unprepared, rushed, and not ready for the trip. The simple technique is to prepare, and have everything completed two days before your event. This way you can handle those last minute distractions. Whether you are a teenager, or an older person who is well experienced and seasoned in managing life and scheduling, this is a great technique to adopt.
As previously stated, the habit of procrastination is
commonly seen in the Body of Christ. Most folks don’t yield their schedules to Christ Jesus – they aren’t sure which items should be prioritized. The quick answer is – all of them. They tend to start out their day by trying to determine what’s the most important thing on their list. Days later, they realize they still haven’t checked off anything. They have failed to manage the activities on their official Action List. In Proverbs, God gives us a clear mandate when He says, “
Man makes a plan, and the Lord directs his steps.
” Since
God is a God of order
, this is the first thing He likely expects us to do. How does a believer go about doing this?
There are two choices a person can make when flooded with multiple tasks at one time. Many intellectually pick out the things that they believe are the most important, but aren’t necessarily God’s will. Do we expect God to join us where we are at work? I’m certain most would say, “yes.” What is the solution to this dilemma? You write them down. As the idea comes, the phone rings or the email/text message arrives, you reach for your pad of paper and you write it down. Then, before you get too far into your day, you go over that list, and compare it to your action list. Decide which items are important enough to add, and then prioritize them.
This methodology
saves the day
—you don’t have to jump on it just because someone threw a “fast-ball.” Put it on the list. Pray about it. Ask God if it fits into His Action List. And here’s the beauty of this whole thing. When Body members refuse to procrastinate, they become people who are respected. Observers know you refuse to procrastinate the important things. They will soon discover you have a system, and that you’ll probably keep to this system. This builds trust. Be a person of action, not impulse.
If you “boil it down” to the basics, procrastination is disobedience. Romans 5:19 says, “
For as through one man’s disobedience, [which is procrastination] the many were made sinners, even so through obedience [immediate action] of the One [Jesus] the many will be made righteous
.” Think about this: He is clearly defining our issue of disobedience. “
Because the obedience of One,”
who refused to procrastinate completing the orders of the Father, many will be made righteous. Can these same Truths apply for us?
Can you imagine Jesus procrastinating
on something the Father told Him to do for your life? Most true Christians would be offended by such behavior. “Well, I’ll put it on the list, and let you know.” Jesus doesn’t get His orders from the bottom. He gets them from the top! When we’re praying through the Holy Spirit to Jesus, our requests don’t stop at Jesus. They go to the Father. He repeatedly tells us in the scriptures, “
Forgive others or the Father will not forgive you
.” Was/is Jesus mindless? No, He is our connecting point to the Father, the One who is the Law. Jesus came to fulfill those mandates (actions) in, and through, His Bride. This is how the Holy Spirit fulfills the Law (mandates) of the Father for eternity.
Procrastination affects self, others & God. Since most procrastinators are selfish, they don’t even think about how delays affect His triune of influence (self, others & God). If you think your procrastination doesn’t affect Jesus Christ, then you are ignorant of the indwelling Truths. When you procrastinate, it’s like dropping a rock into a pond. The waves increase in size as get they closer to solid ground. If you immediately accomplish the task, there is no stone to throw – no waves of consequences to affect those that are solid. Satan cannot manage God’s people! He works through the believer’s self-life choices to destroy the works of Christ.
Until next time...
Stephen Phinney
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Content is taken from,
Discipling The Post-Truth Church, by Dr. Stephen Phinney 2018
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