The Flip Side of the Coin

I have a difficulty--and that is in the fact that I have the tendency to procrastinate. Things that need to be done immediately (or as soon as possible) I lethargically put off as long as I can because I don't desire to do them. I often waste time (that I don't have to spare, quite frankly) and not get done what I need to get done. I have another thing that is not a difficulty--I am rarely late to anything. If I say I will be somewhere at a certain time, unless there is a reasonably unusual and unpredictable circumstance, I will be there at that time.

I can't stand it when people are late to things, because it shows a lack of respect for other people's time. I had a youth minister who, while he had a mercy gift five miles long, never kept appointments (he would often make them and be out of the office when you showed up, and he never returned phone calls or e-mail), and it drove me (and many others) nuts because they felt (correctly) that he didn't have any respect for their time. However, when I put off things that others have asked me to do, often decreasing the quality of the job, or getting it done later, it shows that I also show a lack of respect for other people's time.

It seems a lot of times when I indentify a particular root problem that someone shows a symptom of (such as showing a lack of respect for other people's time), I will often later see that I show the same root problem, just I show it in a different way. Such is definitely the case here and in a slew of other areas. Before being harsh with others, I need to remember to look at the flip side of the coin.

Grace & Peace
Luke