Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 1 Corinthians 15:58
Every week I keep a running to-do list. As the week progresses, I cross off the items I’ve completed. Some weeks I go gang-busters and methodically knock off items systematically. These weeks I feel an overwhelming sense of accomplishment. Other weeks, I shuffle the to-do list in and out of my visual line, contemplating which items to tackle, only to reshuffle it into a pile, toss it aside, or file it away again untouched.
My to-do list is a mixed bag. It often includes the obvious: do laundry, get groceries, pay bills. These things would get accomplished whether or not they were itemized on my list. Other items are the long-term standbys that seem to migrate from list to list and never really get accomplished: clean out the garage, sew button on sweater, alphabetize DVDs. And the final category is the big-hitters, the items that truly need attending to that should be held with the highest priority: make dentist appointment, clean out refrigerator, do taxes.
It is easy to procrastinate any and all items on my to do list.
Procrastinating the everyday stuff is easy because, honestly, it will still be there tomorrow. If I don’t do my laundry today, then there will just be an extra set of socks and underwear to wash tomorrow, right? I can put off paying bills for a brief time, however, there is motivation in the actual doing of this task… If I don’t pay my bills, the electric company will turn off my power. Then I will have proper motivation to pay my bill (this has never happened, by the way, all the more reason their incentive to pay my bill on time works).
The long-term standbys are also easy to procrastinate. Honestly, they’re actually more of a wish list rather than a to-do list. I wish my garage was clean. I don’t really want to take the time and effort to clean it out. I wish the button was on that sweater so I could wear it, but I have at least three other sweater options that override the time it would take to find a needle and thread and do the task of attaching the button.
Unfortunately it is much too easy to procrastinate the big-hitters, too. Won't my refrigerator be okay if those containers of mystery meat stay mysterious? As much as I know I need to get my teeth cleaned, the act of looking up the dentist's number, picking up my phone, and coordinating with the pleasant receptionist and my personal calendar just seems like such a hassle. And taxes? Don’t even get me started on taxes!
I was told a long time ago that people procrastinate for one of four reasons. We either procrastinate because something is difficult, lengthy, unpleasant or expensive. Doesn’t that just about cover it? I procrastinate paying my bills because it is expensive. I procrastinate cleaning my garage because it’s lengthy. I procrastinate the dentist because it is unpleasant. I procrastinate my taxes because they are difficult (and lengthy, and unpleasant, and can prospectively be expensive, too! Can I get an Amen?)
Now, one would think that knowing why we procrastinate would make one less inclined to procrastinate. We can identify the why behind our procrastination and thus address it head-on... Knowing something is unpleasant, we can rationalize with ourselves that the dentist is only unpleasant when we think of it as unpleasant... Can’t we just focus on what is pleasant about the dentist? The clean feeling we have when we leave? The knowledge that we have good oral health? The little plastic baggie of goodies we receive: toothbrush, floss, travel-sized toothpaste? But no… knowing why we procrastinate does not make us procrastinate less.
If anything, for me, it makes me feel all the more guilty. Get ‘er done! Right? Take on the Nike motto and Just do it!
Sigh…
If only it were that easy.
I think a better way to frame the procrastination we feel is to actually give in to it. Yes, you read that right. Give in to procrastination. What do I mean by that? I mean, extend yourself some grace. If a friend were to approach you and say, “Oh, man, I really need to sew this button on this sweater, but I just can’t seem to get motivated to do it.” You would probably look at them like they had a third eye. You’d tell them to relax, take a chill-pill. It’s just a button. You would talk to them about the actual importance of the button and whether or not it is worth stressing over a button. You would help them explore other options: is there someone else who can sew the button for you? Can you buy a new sweater with buttons already attached? Can you cut off all the remaining buttons and make the sweater functional without any buttons at all? Or, (gasp!) could you wear the sweater with a missing button? Would anyone really notice anyway?
You would extend grace to the friend. You would put their procrastination into perspective.
Can we do this for ourselves? Of course there are times, like with taxes, that at one time or another you will have to face the task at hand, take the bull by the horns and do the thing. But don’t you think that most of the items we impose our expectations on are really non-essential. The compulsion we feel to accomplish is self imposed.
Do we need to be eternally stressed out by self-imposed constraints on non-essential tasks? No. But, I want to make an important point here. You need to be honest with yourself about why you’re procrastinating. See above for the possible four reasons (I’m sure there are more than four, but it’s a good jumping off point). Figure it out. Be honest with yourself. Why are you putting a task off? What is the hang-up? Once you have addressed why you are procrastinating, then you can assess the importance. Is it more important to get the task done or is it more important to address the issue of the procrastination?
Now, a point to note is that “being lazy” is not an acceptable reason for procrastination. If you’re just being lazy, this is a whole other issue. Being lazy is allowed to an extent, but when you’re procrastinating in order to veg out for the fifth-hour of watching New Girl on Netflix, you might have some other issues to work through. (Don’t get me wrong, New Girl is great, but we do have to be cognizant of our consumption).
Putting this into perspective is tricky. I don’t want to overreach here, but I also do what to make a point and turn it around to a spiritual standpoint: thinking in terms of the disciples in the first century church. After Jesus has been crucified, resurrected and returned to the Right Hand of the Father, the disciples were left behind to do some big work. I’m sure they had a heck of a to-do list. They’re list may not have been recorded on parchment, but I’m sure it was a litany in their minds daily as they walked, spoke, preached and baptized.
The disciples were commissioned to turn the world upside down with the good news of Jesus and his miraculous legacy. I’m sure they were tired. I’m sure they were troubled and persecuted. However, they were focused on the tasks at hand. I’m sure it was difficult (nothing done in ancient times was easy, at least not to our standards). I’m sure it was unpleasant; some of them literally lost their heads over their work. I’m sure it was lengthy and expensive, too. Expensive maybe not monetarily, but expensive the cost of time, energy, livelihood and even their lives. Now this is not to say that doing laundry is in balance with winning souls for the Kingdom of God. But I am saying work is important. Work is imperative. Work can be a calling by God (yes, even doing laundry can be a calling by God. God bless anyone who cleans and folds clothes for others. You are the unsung heroes.)
Colossians 3:23 says “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” Whatever you do. Whatever. Laundry? Yes. Paying bills? Yes. Taxes, dentist appointments, sewing buttons? Yes, yes, yes!
Whatever you do. We may not be winning souls for Jesus by sewing a button but we can be sewing a button for the Lord. (I know that sounds silly, but stick with me.) If I begrudgingly sew the button on my sweater, that's all that gets accomplished. The button is sewn. But if I sew the button as if working for the Lord, I honor the lord with the offering of my service. My button is reattached and I have spent the time in communion with the creator of the universe.
What does this look like? Well, it can look like any manner of things. I can put on a praise and worship song as I sew or a Christian podcast. I can pray for others as I sew. Maybe with each stitch I place, I pray for someone in my life. Maybe I can use my sewing for a time of gratitude, thanking God with each stitch and naming his provisions in my life. Maybe I can recite a bible verse as I repair the button. All of these are acts of worship. And, honestly, it doesn't even have to be that difficult. Just acknowledging that you have been given another day on earth, another beat of your heart or breath in your lungs in which to sew the button can be working for the Lord.
Imagine if we could take the opportunities to procrastinate and make them opportunities to praise. I think a great shift in mindset could happen. Maybe it’s worth a try.
Well… I guess I’ve spent enough time avoiding my to-do list while writing this post. I’d better get busy and make some head-way. That button isn’t going to sew itself… And who knows, if I work hard and get enough items crossed off my list, I might just have enough time for a couple episodes of New Girl. Who knows?
Testing.