Procrastination 

   “Give me chastity and continence, but not yet.” (St. Augustine, “Confessions”) 

   We are all guilty of putting things off when we know in our hearts that they should be done.  It’s so easy to convince myself that I’m too busy today so I’ll get to that tomorrow.  But then it seems tomorrow is just as busy and before I know it I’ve put it off for a week or a month or maybe I’ve forgotten about it all together.

   It’s easy to see how this can create problems in everyday life.  If I don’t clean my house it becomes a mess that no one would want to live in.  If I don’t maintain my car it will soon break down.  What would have been a minor inconvenience can easily become a major problem if put off too long.

   More difficult to see, but far more important, is how delay affects the spiritual life.  Procrastination is a tool of Satan.  If he can convince us that we will always have time to turn to God, we may never get the chance.  Death bed conversions are wonderful, but we may not have the opportunity; death can come at any time and with no warning.

   It’s so easy to watch another television show or play another computer game rather than pick up the bible or read the life of one of the saints, or to take time for prayer.  Just one more television show won’t hurt, then I’ll start the book and maybe pray for a while.  But now it's time for a shower and bed, guess it'll have to wait until tomorrow.

   If it’s important, do it.  The decision to build our relationship with God is the most important decision we will ever make.  Our eternal soul depends on it. 

To delay risks my soul.

Yet it is so easy to put things off.

Help me to always put You first.

Nothing else truly matters. 

Amen