Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Enthusiasm”
Our Bible verse for today: “The slacker does not plow during planting season; at harvest time he looks, and there is nothing.” Proverbs 20:4 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Nothing kills enthusiasm like procrastination.”
Over the years I’ve known many enthusiastic people who had big dreams and lofty goals. When they talked about the things they wanted to do and achieve they would glow with eager anticipation as they painted a wonderful picture of a full and successful life filled with adventure and accomplishments.
But over time it became obvious that it was just talk. Their big dreams were actually pipe dreams. Their lofty goals were more like wishful thinking. The glow of eager anticipation was a fantasy rather than a realistic likelihood.
But the reason for their lack of achievement wasn’t that they “couldn’t” do it. The reason was that they “wouldn’t” do it. They procrastinated. When it came to actually walking-it-out and taking the action necessary to achieve the things they were dreaming about, they would find excuse after excuse to put it off. It was the Scarlett O’Hara syndrome, “I’ll think about that tomorrow.” Or more precisely, “I’ll start on that tomorrow.” But of course when tomorrow came there was always another reason to put it off for another day.
The end result was a life of unfulfilled dreams and unachieved goals. And again, the reason wasn’t because they couldn’t have done it. The reason was that they simply didn’t do it. They didn’t even try. They procrastinated endlessly until finally their eager anticipation of what could be, slowly morphed into sad remorse of what could have been if only …. If only. If only they had done it instead of just talked about it. If only they had stopped making excuses and started making progress. If only …
Nothing kills-off enthusiasm like procrastination. Put a thing off long enough and your zest and zeal for it will slowly diminish into a dying ember of long lost dreams and unachieved aspirations.
If you’re enthusiastic for something now, then just do it now. Start walking-it-out. Take the first steps towards achieving it. Then take the second step, and the third, and then keep taking steps forward. The more forward progress you make the more you will feed your enthusiasm for it and the more progress you will continue to make. But the more you put it off and procrastinate, the less likely you become of ever achieving it.
The slacker in Proverbs 20:4 would surely have liked an abundant harvest, but he didn’t do the work in order to get an abundant harvest. So when harvest time came, he had nothing.
Don’t be that guy. Don’t be the slacker. Ask God to give you enthusiasm for the right things, and then act on that enthusiasm.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 