Procrastination is a common problem. Often we wait too long to do things that need to be done. Frequently we lack a needed sense of urgency. In all spiritual matters we must guard against the temptation to postpone doing what is right.
However, there is ‘another side to that coin.’ Sometimes we are too quick to act. In certain areas we need to slow down, move more cautiously, and be careful that we don’t do things too soon. For instance:
– Many folks must fight the temptation to grow angry in an instant. They have the proverbial ‘hair trigger’ and it takes very little to ‘set them off.’ These people need to learn that “the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God,” and so they need to be “swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” (James 1:19,20).
– Some are prone to assume the worst about other people without sufficient evidence to support their suspicions. Too often brethren suffer long and bitter alienations that are sinful and unnecessary. We all should remember that real love “is not easily provoked” and “thinketh no evil” (1 Cor. 13:4-7).
– There is an overly quick tendency to presuppose that certain individuals would not be open to the gospel message. We think that they wouldn’t listen even if we tried to share the truth with them – so we do nothing. The parable of the sower surely teaches us to sow the seed everywhere, and let it find the true hearts that will receive it (Matthew 13:3-8, 18-23).
– Many parents are rushing their children into premature interest in the opposite sex. They seek opportunities for their adolescent children to develop feelings should be reserved for a later, more mature time. This push to awaken their senses in this emotional ‘tinderbox’ has left many families ‘burned’ with the sad consequences.
In these and other significant areas it may be that we need to ‘slow down’ a little. Think!
– by Greg Gwin