Spiritual Procrastination

Do you suffer from spiritual procrastination? I do. Here's Pete Wilson's challenging words on that subject:

I read the verse below this morning and thought it was so fitting for the beginning of a new year.

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90:12

One of the things that is keeping us from seizing our divine moment is the very dangerous word… Tomorrow. We suffer from what might be called spiritual procrastination.

Now, procrastination is not the same thing as physical laziness. You could be hyperactive and still be a procrastinator.

Procrastination is the failure to do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done.

It’s the failure to do the right thing at the right time. For most of us our problem is not that we don’t know what to do. Our problem is not that we deliberately refuse to do what we ought to do. We just don’t get around to doing it.

There are a variety of consequences to spiritual procrastination from destroying relationships, to stress, to a chronic sense of guilt. It can erode your sense of joy and eat at your self esteem. But the worst is, it will keep you from ever realizing the purpose for which God created you-not because you ever said “no” to God. You just said “tomorrow”.

So here is the bottom line. As we go into this new year, where in your life are you choosing “tomorrow” where God wants you to choose “today”.

Let’s get going. Our days are numbered!

Everything

Love these words from The Anchoress:

“Everything” is about nothing.
Everything ended with the sacrifice of the Lamb.
All is consummated.
We are forever and always at the Last Supper, at the Crucifixion, at the Resurrection.
Time ended with the tearing of the veil and the rolling back of the stone.
The rest is illusion and catching up.
There is nothing to be afraid of."

Time for What Matters

From a few days ago at A Place For The God-Hungry here's a great list of things for which there is Just Enough Time for What Matters

Today, I realize just how valuable time really is.

1. I don’t have time to waste on things that don’t matter. I have plenty of time for the things that count.
2. I don’t have time to get moody, self-centered, and irritable. I do have time to love my wife and children.
3. I don’t have time to wallow in the past over what might have been. I do have time to focus on what God wants to do in my life today.
4. I don’t have time to play self-importance games (Whom do you know? What kind of house do you live in? What have your kids accomplished? What are you driving?). I do have time to build up others and forget myself.
5. I don’t have time to coddle worldly, immature Christians whose idea of church is getting their way. I have plenty of time to love fellow Christians who may have various opinions.
6. I don’t have time to be a peacemonger (doing whatever it takes to keep others from getting upset). I do have time to be a peacemaker (loving people no matter what).
7. I don’t have time to play it safe and never risk the possibility of discomfort. I do have time to trust God who has promised to never leave me or forsake me.
8. I don’t have time to whine and blame others for being obstacles. I do have time to take responsibility for my own actions and behavior.
9. I don’t have time to complain and focus on the negative. I do have time to speak a word of hope to people who are overwhelmed by heartache.
10. I don’t have time to settle for the mediocre. I do have time to be passionate about what matters most to God.

Read Books, Not Blogs?

I discovered a new blog (new to me anyway) this week called "The Blazing Center." I found the following post there by Stephen Altrogge interesting and thought provoking - The Blazing Center » Blog Archive » Read Books, Not Blogs. He lists some reasons why reading books can be more edifying than reading blogs.

Books Require More Reflection From the Reader

When I sit down to read John Owen, my brain needs to be fully engaged. His deep theological arguments go on for pages and require intense thought and reflection. When I’m done reading Owen my ears are dripping brain fluid and my heart is warm with truth. Reading a good theological book is like having a deep heart-to-heart conversation with an incredibly godly person.

Generally speaking, blog posts are quick bites. Usually weighing in at 400 words are less, they don’t require the same type of intense, heart-searching thought. I want to read more books because they don’t pander to my television-created short attention span.

Books Are the Result of Much Reflection By the Writer

Writing a book is like giving birth, except without the intense pain and the hospitals and a baby at the end. Seriously though, writing a God-honoring book requires hours of hard work, deep thought, and prayer. They’re the result of many hours of meditation on the word of God. When I sit down to read a book by John Piper, I know that I’m reading the words of a man who has thought long and hard about what it means to follow Christ.

Blogs require much less work by the writer. On a good day I can bang out a blog post in thirty minutes. They’re not the result of two years worth of sermons or hundreds of hours hunched over the sacred text. I hope they’re rooted in scripture and encouraging to the saints. But books flow out of person’s life, blog posts flow out of a person’s current thoughts.

Books Bring Accountability

For a book to be published it must go through a gauntlet of tests. It must be approved by a publishing committee that trusts the author, it must be scrutinized by an editor, and it must be endorsed by reputable people. This process in a sense holds authors accountable.

Blog posts can be written by anyone at anytime in anyplace. No credentials needed. No accountability required. All behind the beautiful anonymity of the Internet.

I'm both a bibliophile and a blogger. I have noticed that the increased time I have spent over that past six months reading blogs and preparing my blog has cut into my book reading. Perhaps I need to make some adjustments for more balance. Don't you just love being reminded about priorities?