Proverbs 6:6-7 (NLT)
“Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and be wise! Even though they have no prince, governor, or ruler to make them work…”

The Killer of Dreams

Most of us spend a significant amount of time “putting out fires” in our lives and the lives of everyone around us. We are busy, but are we productive? The problem is rarely a lack of talent; it is a lack of timing. Procrastination is the great killer of dreams. We hide behind excuses like “I don’t have time,” “I’m too busy,” or “I’m waiting on the right moment.”
The ant provides a stinging rebuke to our excuses. The ant doesn’t need a boss to tell it that winter is coming. It has an internal drive to fulfill its design. Ask yourself: What is that thing that, if you don’t do it, won’t get done? God designed you for a unique and vital purpose. When you fulfill that purpose, you bless others. When you delay, you withhold a blessing from the world.

The Practice

Defeating the Stall

1. The Hour of Truth
Freshen your mind with thoughts of your own mortality. If you knew you had only one hour to live, what would you do? This isn’t meant to be morbid; it’s meant to be a clarifier. Death is the ultimate deadline. Let it remind you that your time is a non-renewable resource.
2. The Plain Vision
Write your vision and make it plain (Habakkuk 2:2). If it’s only in your head, it’s a wish; if it’s on paper, it’s a plan. Once it’s written, commit to it daily. The world needs your purpose, but ironically, the world will not help you achieve it. The enemy will give you a thousand reasons why you should stop, but your “Paper Vision” will give you the one reason why you must keep going.
3. Be Coachable, Not Myopic
You must move with tenacity, but you must also be open to correction. Resist myopia—that narrow-minded view that only sees your own feelings and immediate obstacles. Strive for a “Cosmopolitic” view; see the bigger, broader picture of what God is doing. Allow Him to order your steps, even when the direction feels like a detour.
4. Manage the Fire
Keep the main thing the main thing. We often allow the Urgent (the fires) to hijack the Important (the purpose). Purpose is rarely “loud,” but fires always are. Don’t let the noise of a crisis drown out the quiet command of your calling.

Today’s Declaration

“I will not wait for a ‘governor’ to move me. Like the ant, I will work from my internal purpose rather than my external pressure. I choose the important over the urgent, and I refuse to let procrastination kill the dream God placed in my heart. I am writing the vision, and I am moving today.”

The ant is wise because it moves before it has to. Today is a great day to make a Fresh Start!
God bless,
+Pastor Kris