Are you one of those people who has a habit of putting off things for later? The term is procrastination and is often the result of laziness or poor time management. Scripture commends hard work and industry (Proverbs 12:24; 13:4) and warns against sloth and slackness (Proverbs 15:19; 18:9). However, the reason we procrastinate may not be because of laziness or poor time management skills; it may be an emotional issue.
It works like this. We know we have to undertake an important project. We think about how the various tasks will feel when we set about doing them. We imagine that doing them will not make us feel good—we will feel stressed/pressured/etc. (If we are perfectionists, add fear to the mix.) So, we avoid the project for as long as we possibly can. And when we finally get around to it, we find ourselves darting from one task to another, taking forever to finish something. Sound familiar?
What's the solution? Here it is, in three easy steps. First, chill! Seriously, take it easy. We often think if we mess up something, the world will end. It won't. If we don't make it a life-or-death matter, a lot of the pressure will instantly diminish. Look at it like baking a large pizza in the oven. Yes, I know you want to bake a perfect pizza, but tell yourself you will make a terrible one and see what happens!
Second, break it up into smaller tasks. Making pizza can be daunting, what with all that mixing, and kneading, and chopping, and baking! But a good recipe always takes you through the steps, one at a time. That's how it works with any project—one step at a time. Put the steps down on a sheet of paper, and tick them off, one thing at a time.
Third, stagger it. You don't have to do everything in one go, any more than you are going to eat that pizza that came out of your oven in one sitting. (Wasn't so terrible after all, was it?) Give yourself half an hour to do a task, then take a break before continuing your task. And before you know it, Mission Impossible became Mission Accomplished!
I do have an ace up my sleeve, though. It's Jesus. Folks sometimes ask me how I can do as much as I do—the writing, the videography, the editing, the live sessions, etc. The answer is Jesus. He helps me with every single thing I do. However, the doing isn't really hard if we follow the three steps listed above; it was getting back to the doing that was difficult. I really didn't want to. But he just kept reminding me of my purpose in life and how he was by my side until I finally got moving. Ditto for you, my friend. "If God is for you, who can be against you?" (Romans 8:31).
May the Spirit be with you.