personally

was out doing some reflection with a close friend and we started talking on dreams/goals.
it was an insightful one and would like to share, hope it helps you!
 
We were talking about our goals and dreams and the neverending things that needs to be done and we are always no where near where we want to be.
why is it so? we pointed out that we both suffer from laziness and that puts us off. 
procrastination... lack of time.... tired.... yeah we all heard that before.
the fact that we have so many many goals/ideas to pursue and the other side of us saying aiya i don't think i can get it done. i don't know which to pursue and even if i do, i don't have the time to do so. 
 
we defeat ourselves before the war starts.
 
furthermore, this cycle will repeat as we have new ideas to pursue just to defeat ourselves again and again. we start to condemn ourselves at our inability to do something. its a vicious cycle.
 
when we say we don't have time to do this and that, do we really? 
i like to personally blame work saying that i have no time. but honestly when i come back at 10pm and sleep at 3am, what am i doing with that 5hours?? too tired i say. true but if its so, why do i sleep at 3am and not earlier? root of it all, lazy.


don't know where to start? plan and prioritise. 

in some circumstances i do believe that many things can be equally impt and have to be handled asap but for the majority, i believe somethings are less important than the other if we really want to look and analyse it properly.

 

visions/ideas/dreams? write them down and draft plan! don't forget them! if you think of it lesser today than yesterday, chances are, you will lose interest in it along the days to come and its not vision material.

 

so laziness. the part we hate about ourselves. (me and my friend that is)

i think we have to learn to see that laziness is a sin.

there're many verses that speaks about it in proverbs,

one being:

 

Prov 6:9-11

 9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard? 
  When will you get up from your sleep? 

 10 A little sleep, a little slumber, 
  a little folding of the hands to rest- 

 11 and poverty will come on you like a bandit 
  and scarcity like an armed man.

 

we have to identify that laziness is not a part of us. we will keep defeating ourselves when we keep thinking that i am born lazy and thus cannot do anything about it. yes there are people who are more phelgmatic but using that is an excuse of not getting things done.

 

paul says it nicely:

Romans 7:15-19 (New International Version)

I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing

 

there are two sides at war whenever we make decisions. the sinful nature and the child of God. we have to wage war and not defeat ourselves before the war even begins.

once we see that we can fight this with God everything changes. 

the sinful nature only does what it does best, sin, causing us defeat and guilt and shame.

 

choose against it by God's strength and grace!

don't feel like coming for service? all the more we should go. beat ourselves! deny the laziness. we can deny it with God's strength.

its like having an internal war with yourself. 

struggle. persevere.

hate the sin not ourselves.

the moment we hate ourselves, we defeat ourself. 

self condemnation comes in

"why am i always like that?"



know that its the sin in us causing us this and know,

that with God's help, we can have victory.

after all, we are fighting from victory ;)

 

i hope it gives you insight as well as it did for me!