Tomorrow

There’s an old saying:

Don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today.

On Sunday, Pastor Pete spoke about one of the lies we believe, which is that we can do it tomorrow. He talked about Pharaoh and Moses, and how Pharaoh told Moses to remove the frogs plaguing them tomorrow. Not today. Tomorrow.

Who in their right mind would want to deal with frogs invading their home and life for a single minute? Let alone, put off fixing a problem of that magnitude for an entire day?

Pete explained that Pharaoh had gotten used to the frogs. He could manage the discomfort. He had learned to deal with it.

So I’m left with these questions… What problem have I grown accustomed to? What am I not dealing with? What do I need to do today that I have been putting off for a tomorrow that will never come?

This would have been a good post for Monday, but I was too busy procrastinating doing my taxes. I’m sure I’m not the only one. I procrastinate working out, I procrastinate buying healthy snacks from the grocery store, I procrastinate organizing my office… I procrastinate things that are good for me, and it’s not for lack of ideas, or necessarily even motivation. It’s that the timing isn’t just quite perfect.

I might not have enough time to finish.
I might not have the tools I need.
Does it need to be done today? Can it be done tomorrow?
It will be easier to do tomorrow.

I have become so good at procrastinating for a better day. In fact, I would say I consciously, consistently ask myself what is most urgent and important — a good thing — and this results in a lot of things being procrastinated for a more convenient time.

The other day Jonathan Fields posted a link to this article by Cathy Wilke on Twitter. In it, Cathy shares the story of how she had a great idea, but inadequate time and materials, so she put it off for years, only to discover that someone else (Jonathan) came upon the same idea but put the effort in to make it happen. It’s the story of a missed opportunity, or one that will now need to be rejuvenated and executed in her own unique way.

Now that Tax Day has passed… What are you procrastinating? What is holding you back? What idea have you been ruminating over, but just haven’t started?