ONE OF THESE DAYS

When we say, "one of those days," like I did yesterday, we usually mean we have had a rotten day. When we say, "one of these days," it usually refers to procrastination. We look at the mess that is our life, our relationships, our clutter, our waist-line, and we are determined to do something about it - someday. One of my wife's favorite sayings is, "Tomorrow, I am going on a diet." I am waiting for the time when I can remind her that she said the same thing just yesterday. That is probably not a good idea, huh?

Procrastination can sometimes be a good thing, although I doubt that it can be planned to work out that way. For instance, let's say that the car needs new tires, and we go take care of it. How wasteful would that be if we totaled the car on the way home from the tire place? That could also be an excuse for not washing it. After all, it could be totaled coming home from the car wash.

Procrastination is also a good thing when it comes to getting revenge on someone. Have you ever gotten really mad at someone, "let them have it," and later found out he wasn't the person who wronged you? I have seen a few movies with that plot: the father who kills the man he believes responsible for his daughter's death, only to discover it was someone else. Proverbs and James speak to this: "He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding; but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly" (Prov. 14:29). "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath" (Jam. 1:19). That was the main plot of the Jackie Gleason television show. He always jumped to conclusions and found out later he was wrong. He is best known for the line, "One of these day, one of these days Alice, to the moon!" He said this with fist clinched as though he would "send her to the moon by punching her."

Procrastination, more often than not, is a bad characteristic. Waiting to the last minute to study for an exam usually results in a lower grade. Failing to plan out a trip usually leads to forgetting something, or needing to call for directions from a town ten miles beyond your destination. "Putting it off until tomorrow" can lead to a ruined engine in the car you sit in waiting for the tow truck. Checking the oil would have taken a few minutes, but they would have been well spent. The Bible gives some examples of doing what needs done immediately: manna needed to be eaten "today" (Lev. 22:30); reconciliation needed to be made "today" (Matt. 5:23-24).

The most serious result of procrastination is when someone puts off accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. James says that we don't always have another day to do things (4:13-14). Paul wrote, "...behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation" (2 Cor. 6:2). Isaiah said it this way: "Seek ye the LORD while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near" (55:6). Procrastination can have eternal consequences! The solution, according to one comedian is "getter done." That's good advice.