There's an old story about a couple with a leaky roof. The wife told the husband, "You need to fix the roof; it's leaking!" "Honey, I can't fix the roof now," the husband replied, "it's raining." After the rainstorm stopped, the wife asked the husband, "Would you fix the roof now please?" The husband replied, "Why do I need to fix the roof now? It's not leaking." The next rainstorm it leaked even more. The scenario was repeated until finally not just a little leak needed fixing; the entire roof needed to be fixed. I'm not sure if they finally fixed the roof or decided to move to the barn, but this story clearly demonstrates the evils of procrastination.
In Proverbs 24:30-34 Solomon relates, "I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; and, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction. Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: so shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man."
Yes, we have the instinct of self-preservation, and we try not to hurt ourselves; but often we fall victim to the vice of procrastination and hurt ourselves by missing out on much that life has to offer. "Just 15 more minutes of sleep!" we say as we hit the snooze button on the alarm clock. We finally wake up a half hour later and realize we missed out on a beautiful, invigorating sunrise walk. "Oh, I'll do my studying later!" we say, and we flunk the test. "I'll make things right in a few days," we think after wronging a friend. The days pass, then the years, and we find we have no friend. "The weeds in my garden can wait!" we declare, and pretty soon we have no garden, only weeds. "I need to conserve my energy, Why give my all at work? " we may think, and before we know it, we're fired.
Laziness and procrastination are expensive habits; we pay for them in everything that is most dear. If we indulge in these habits we lose time and money, hurt relationships, and fail in life.
Colossians 3:23 instructs us, "Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord." Put your heart into your endeavors, start with the little things, go on to greater things, and when the roof leaks....fix it!
