THE SLY SABOTEUR
How to arrest ministry's nemesis, Procrastination.
John Maxwell
January 1, 1993
Why start Sunday's sermon now when Newsweek arrived in today's mail? Why make those last few phone calls before going home when you can make them during halftime of the Monday Night Football game? It's no easily exorcised habit, this demon of procrastinating, putting off until later what should be done this very moment. A pastor who cherishes every moment, John Maxwell has felt the squeeze procrastinating puts on his life and ministry. This article is excerpted from The Time Crunch: What to Do When You Can't Do It All, co-authored by John Maxwell, Greg Asimakoupoulos, and Steve McKinley. It is the latest volume in the book series Mastering Ministry's Pressure Points, co-published by Multnomah Press and LEADERSHIP. We pastors are tempted to put off tough but necessary tasks. We need to confront a member about gossiping, but that could get ugly, so we visit someone in the hospital. We need to propose some cuts to balance the budget, but the tradeoffs will be painful, so we read a book. We need to clarify the church's ministry philosophy, but the more specific we get, the greater the risks appear, so we return phone calls and visit with staff members. We're working, but we're letting important, difficult priorities slide. That's procrastination, and the cost is high. Procrastination is easy to rationalize, and tough to overcome. Why We Put Things Off
Reasons to procrastinate abound, some obvious, others subconscious. The more we uncover and understand them, the better we can develop a game plan to defeat the delay habit. Here are four of the more common causes. Poor self-confidence. When we know we can do a good job, we can't wait to do it; when we feel inadequate, we procrastinate. We're poor, say, in administration, so we avoid it ...
Like the preview? To read this complete article
and 18,013 more in the archive—JOIN NOW!
Easily find high-quality, well-researched materials that provide a Christian perspective on topics ranging from headlines to history.
Start using this invaluable tool TODAY for preparing your Bible studies, presentations, class lectures, sermons, meetings, and more.
|
It's easy and quick to join:
Brought to You by Christianity Today Int'l |  |
|
| 
Find similar articles
E-mail this page
