The most dangerous word

Well, I would have written an award-winning column this week, I’m sure. But I just never got around to it. If I had saved 10% of every paycheck since my teens years at Gibson’s, I would be very wealthy … but I never got around to it. I should have made a phone call … but got too busy. 

As you can tell, I’m writing with ‘tongue in cheek.’ (I don’t know where that saying started … maybe I’ll investigate someday.)

We all procrastinate at times, some more than others. It will catch up with us, one of these days.

Irish poet and playwright Oscar Wilde once said, “I never put off till tomorrow what I can possibly do the day after.”

A scholar once surveyed Scripture to discover the most significant words in all of the Bible. He found the saddest, happiest, most emotional etc. When he came around to the most dangerous word, he identified it as ‘tomorrow.’  He said, “That word is a thief that robs dreamers of their dreams and the talented of their greatest achievements. It keeps men and women from coming to Christ and discovering the kind of life God longs for them to have.”

Charles Spurgeon agreed, “Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow! Alas tomorrow never comes. It is in no calendar except the almanac of fools.”

The Bible states in Proverbs 27:1, “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.” NKJV

I felt like God nudged me to send a note of encouragement to a friend and it took me about three days to get it done. I felt bad that I procrastinated. But I felt so good when the envelope had a stamp and away it went.

We don’t know if we have tomorrow, so we should never put off a good deed. This theme came from a son’s recent sermon I heard and I asked for permission to sort of ‘plagiarise.’

He said, procrastination robs us of opportunities for service. He explored several definitions of service, but they all lead to the idea that service is not about us!

Jesus Christ was all about service during his earthly ministry. I’m guessing if we want to be more like Jesus —  we need to think “others first” also.

Procrastination also robs you of the opportunity to be successful.  David Jeremiah said, “If you describe yourself as a chronic procrastinator, that’s another way of saying, ‘I’m planning on avoiding a successful life.’”

In a recent study by productivity author/blogger Darius Foroux, 80% of the workforce admitted they procrastinate between one and four hours a day. This isn’t kids playing video games —  these are adults in the workforce. Put dollars to that and a person making $40,000 a year adds up to $15,000 of their annual pay. That’s stealing from our bosses!

My son added, “if you read the stories of men and women who have found success, you will discover that they were people who took time seriously.”

Charles Schwab, chairman of Bethlehem Steel said one of the best pieces of advice he ever received was to make a to-do list. Make sure you prioritize it. In other words, cleaning the grout from the tile in the bathroom is not more important than reading your Bible.

Proverbs 6:6-11 encourages us to learn from the ant. “Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise.” Ants are very hard workers and very organized. My son added, “There is no procrastination happening in the ant hill in his driveway.”

There’s definitely time for rest, but if we surround ourselves with wise people who keep us accountable, maybe we won’t slip into the weakness of procrastination.

Third, procrastination robs you of the opportunity for salvation. This is the most important reason we need to be proactive. No one will get out of this life alive. Eternity is just a heartbeat away for all of us. We must not put off accepting the gift of salvation Jesus Christ provided by His death on the cross.

Acts 24:1 gives us the story of Felix, who responded to Paul’s preaching by saying, “when I have a more convenient time, I will call for you.” 

Don’t put anything off that God is talking to you about doing. We never know when our appointment with God is scheduled and we will not be able to procrastinate that one!