My Blog, my journey… or something like that :o)

Seeing is not always believing. Old beliefs as well as old habits die hard. For centuries people believed Aristotle’s opinion that the heavier an object, the faster it would fall to earth.

I am not an engineer but according to a report I read, in 1589 Galileo challenged Aristotle’s teaching. He invited learned professors to the base of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Galileo went to the top of the tower and at exactly the same moment pushed off a ten-pound and a one-pound weight.

Both landed at the same instant, but the professors still wouldn’t believe what they saw. They insisted Aristotle was right.

To move ahead in life and to grow—intellectually, emotionally and spiritually—it is important that we examine all our beliefs, test them, hold to the true and discard the false. Admittedly, this is much easier said than done but done it must be if we are to keep learning and growing. Unless we are open to and willing to change, we get stuck in our ways and cease to grow.

We don’t read much about Apollos in the Bible but he was a contemporary of the Apostle Paul. He was a very gifted and educated man "with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures." But he only knew about John the Baptist’s baptism. So when Priscilla and Aquila heard him speak, they explained the gospel message to him more completely.

The end result was that Apollos was willing to listen, was teachable, made the necessary changes in his beliefs and as a result became a "great help" to the church (v. 27).

"When Priscilla and Aquila heard him [Apollos], they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately" (Acts 18:26, NIV).

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please confront me with every issue in my life I need to be aware of, help me to be teachable, and give me the courage to make necessary changes in my life where needed. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen."

One of the greatest time wasters is procrastination. Many of us tend to put off those tasks we don’t like doing or are afraid to tackle. Then we feel frustrated or guilty because we’re not getting them done. And the more frustrated we get, the more we procrastinate and so on.

How do we get out of this cycle of defeat?

Oftentimes there’s a deeper reason people keep putting things off. If this is so for you, ask God to show you the cause and work on that. In the meantime you can make a start by changing your self-talk. If you keep telling yourself that you are hopeless at getting things done on time, you will reinforce this belief and keep acting accordingly. Remember, what the mind dwells on the body acts on!

So, first of all change your self-talk by saying things to yourself like, "With God’s help I can get things done on time."

Next, make a list of things to do today. List them in order of priority and tackle them one at a time. Make sure your list is realistic. If you list more than you can do, you will end up feeling discouraged and reinforce your tendency to put things off.

Third, set a positive goal. Make up your mind you are going to get each task done, giving yourself a realistic time limit in which to achieve your goal.

Fourth, plan your work then work your plan. Have a definite plan of attack and follow that plan. Take cleaning your house, garage, or yard for example. Imagine it to be a giant clock and start cleaning at the 12 o’clock position and keep working around the clock. Don’t jump from one room or corner or from one task to another until each section is completed. Keep to your plan and pretty soon a sense of achievement will make the task more encouraging and enjoyable.

Fifth, whatever the task is, break it down into "bite-size" proportions. When I first thought about writing a book, the task seemed overwhelming. A friend suggested to think about writing it just one page at a time. I did. And the book got finished.

Sixth, reward yourself in some positive way for getting your task or tasks done on time. This will help reinforce your new belief that you are a person who gets things done when they need to be done.

Seventh, pray-especially if you are a compulsive procrastinator. Pray that God will help you to face the root cause of your problem. If you pray this prayer and truly mean it, God will show you if you genuinely want him to.

"Work hard and become a leader, be lazy and never succeed" (Proverbs 12:24, TLB).

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, with my procrastination problem I have (and any other problem) please give me the insight to see the cause of it, find the help I need to resolve it, and the courage to do all that is in my control to master it instead of allowing it to master me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen."