Procrastination // Praise

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You procrastinate.

You dread any sense of impending failure.

These two sentences that attempt to put into words parts of your beautiful self are seemingly unrelated, but do not be deceived. They are very much related! It is necessary to point out that I do not know one person who has never procrastinated or that relishes a glorious moment of failure. That being said, I do not know one person who doesn’t like the taste of getting something done and done well, i.e. an accomplishment. 

Ah. There it is: our connection. 
Accomplishment.

Dwell on that word for a moment. What does it make you think of? Olympians? Mongols? Spelling B winners? Winners in life, perhaps? Or at the very least—winners in their particular field? Now think about a time you accomplished something, and really accomplished it well. I’ll start you off by offering a very simple but personal example.

When I was about eleven or twelve years old, my entire household was gone for the day, leaving me home alone with whatever alarming number of dogs we had at the time. It was just after Thanksgiving, which signified the arrival of the most wonderful time of the year... the season of Christmas. Being all by my lonesome, I deep-cleaned the entire house; vacuuming and moping all the floors, polishing the cabinets and counters, the occasional repositioning of furniture… all of this and more took up a good hunk of the day. Once I had finally finished, the dim attic was unlocked and dusty Christmas boxes filled with childhood nostalgia were pulled out and dragged into the living room. I decorated that house to the tee of perfection, unwrapping Christmas spirit with every stocking hung above the fireplace and every Nat King Cole song that enchantingly hummed in the background. 

Then the time had arrived. My family was home! They walked into the cheery smell of cinnamon and the inviting presence of Christmas. Was I proud of the work I had done? You can count on it. I did it because my family was able to reap the benefits of my work. But beyond this, my parents praised me for it. It was quite the accomplishment if there ever was one.   

Hold it, you might be thinking. You did this so you could be praised for it? That seems entirely self-interested.

Well, now I’m going to ask you to ‘hold it’—just for a moment. Firstly, I will note that the original intent was to bless my family. But what if they came home, didn't notice my work, and started complaining about something entirely unrelated to everything I had just done for them? Would I have felt my work was worth the effort? Consider your most basic desires. I’m not talking about bodily sustenance and health, but spiritual desires. Sift through everything your spirit, which is you, longing for.

Holy nearness? Yes. 
Fellowship? Yes.  
Leadership? Yes. 
Respect? Yes. 
Honor? Yes.

Was praise on your list? If not, it should have been, because it is fundamental. To be praised is to be acknowledged and admired for one’s deeds. It’s uncommonly accredited, but the desire to be praised is among the most basic of all spiritual desires. It’s fulfilling. It’s encouraging. It’s life-giving.

It’s God-intrinsic. Don’t believe me? Then let us look to the Word of God Himself for insight. 

"...the desire to be praised is among the most basic of all spiritual desires... It's God-intrinsic."

In the Bible, praise is synonymous with giving thanks. Psalms 65:1-2 states that praise is due to God. Why?  Psalms 99:5 tells us to praise Him because He is holy! This being said, God does not need our praise—He is worthy of our praise.¹ And do we not all desire what we are worthy of?

Now the question that must be asked is, are we, as children of God, worthy of praise?

Yes!

Since in Christ we have been made holy (see 1 Peter 2:9 and 2 Corinthians 5:17), we too can desire praise without shame. Thankfulness and praise is uplifting—it is not something to be ashamed of wanting, nor to be disappointed or hurt when we don’t receive it, and joyful when we do.  

Here is the problem, though: humanity will not satisfy you. Not your desire for praise nor any other desire. Not completely. And thankfully, you don’t have to rely on humanity to.

When we desire fulfillment from mankind, we will stop at nothing to get it—and then it becomes and object of worship.

When we desire fulfillment from God, we will stop at nothing to get it—and then He becomes the rightful recipient of our worship.

We need not fear failure or rely on people because we have an amazing God who loves us—most ardently.

So do not procrastinate. Take life by the horns and charge it straight towards God!

Miss Ryleigh

1. Hall, Amy K. “Why Would God Want Us to Praise Him?” Stand to Reason Blog. 30 January 2012.