Seize the Moment! Don’t Procrastinate!

August 19, 2025

A compilation

You will often have Bartimaeus moments in ministry. What’s a Bartimaeus moment? It’s anytime that God gives you an opportunity seemingly out of nowhere.

In Mark 10, a huge crowd was following Jesus as he left Jericho. A man named Bartimaeus was blind and begging by the roadside. When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:47).

When Bartimaeus had gotten up that morning, he had no idea that Jesus Christ was going to be passing by him that day. He thought it was just another ordinary day—same place, same cry for help, same situation. But suddenly Jesus was there.

Bartimaeus had no time to prepare or think through his response. It was just an opportunity that dropped in his lap. And he chose to seize the moment. He decided not to delay or procrastinate. He was going to do it—now.

That’s a great reminder for ministry too: Whatever you’re going to do, do it now. Don’t say, “Next year I’m going to start that new ministry” or “Next month I’m going to reach out to that person” or “Tomorrow I’m going to make that a priority.”

It’s now or never. Seize the moment!

Every day, we have opportunities in ministry, but we don’t take advantage of them. Why? We procrastinate. Procrastination is a strange phenomenon. You think it will make your life easier when it actually does just the opposite. It’s a stress generator!

When you know the right thing to do, today is the time to do it. Don’t assume you can wait for tomorrow. The Bible warns over and over about presuming upon tomorrow. I’m not guaranteed a tomorrow, and neither are you.

Jesus said, “No procrastination. No backward looks. You can’t put God’s kingdom off till tomorrow. Seize the day” (Luke 9:62).

You have no guarantee that you will have a better opportunity tomorrow. You have no guarantee you’ll even be alive tomorrow. Whatever you’re going to do, do it now.

Is Jesus inviting you to try something new? Don’t delay. Follow the example of Bartimaeus and seize the moment.—Rick Warren¹

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I’m someone who tends to go by inspiration, and I’ve long been bothered by my scattered approach to setting goals, so I was searching for an effective way to make it through my to-do list. It seems so easy to pick out the things I prefer doing or feel inspired to tackle first, but unfortunately, this strategy often leads to procrastination, and those “favorites” often aren’t the most important or priority tasks. Since the important stuff doesn’t just disappear, I find myself cramming in order to fit everything in.

Something had to change, and one morning during my daily devotions, I specifically prayed that God would help me get a handle on my poor prioritizing skills.

A few days later when browsing through stalls at a flea market, a book caught my eye. The odd title, You Can’t Send a Duck to Eagle School, peeked out from among a pile of dusty secondhand books crammed into a cardboard box. I pulled it out and cracked it open to a quote from Mark Twain: “Eat a live frog every morning, and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.”

The accompanying article explained the basic idea of tackling the most daunting task first, likening those tasks to eating a frog before getting to more appealing to-dos. There were many other useful anecdotes on getting things done, but this picture stuck with me, and I realized it could be the answer to my prayer for a strategy.

Since I’ve had a severe back problem from the age of ten, daily exercise and stretching has been a must to help me function through the day, but over the years, it’s become a chore that I sometimes dread. Getting this routine off my to-dos was definitely going to be my first “frog” of the day.

Identifying this and other “frogs” felt strange in the beginning, but this simple tactic has improved my work habits and helped keep procrastination at bay. Even on days when I don’t have time to write a to-do list, I still remember to search out a “frog” that needs my attention first.—Iris Richard

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The Principle of Priority states (a) you must know the difference between what is urgent and what is important, and (b) you must do what’s important first.—Steven Pressfield

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Don’t wait. The time will never be just right.—Napoleon Hill

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Waiting to develop courage is just another form of procrastination. The most successful people take action while they’re afraid!—Author unknown

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Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.—Dale Carnegie

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I’ve often struggled to make time to pray. Though my wife and I pray together each morning and before bed, I find myself neglecting that regular “talking with Jesus” throughout the day, especially when unexpected things come up. I know I need to pray, but it’s hard, really hard, to set aside “prayer time.”

Then, I read about the 2-Minute Rule.²Here’s how it works.

Most of the tasks that we procrastinate on aren’t actually difficult to do. It’s completely possible to accomplish them—we just avoid starting them for some reason, mostly because we “don’t have time.”

The 2–Minute Rule overcomes procrastination by making it easy to start taking action. There are two parts to the 2–Minute Rule…

Part 1: If it takes less than two minutes, do it now.

There are many things we put off that we could get done in two minutes or less. For example, washing our dishes immediately after a meal, tossing the laundry in the washing machine, taking out the garbage, cleaning up clutter, sending that email, and so on.

So, the rule says if a task takes less than two minutes to complete, do it right away. Does that apply to prayer? It sure does!

Part 2: When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do.

Can all our goals be accomplished in less than two minutes? Of course not, but every goal can be started in two minutes or less.

So, how does this help me to pray more? Well, instead of waiting to have a large block of “prayer time,” I’m trying to pray short prayers throughout the day—as soon as the need presents itself, if possible. Longer, desperate prayers are good and certainly needed, but a good start is to pray even short prayers now, without delaying.

The Bible promises that Jesus always hears me, so I’m acting on that truth (1 John 5:14–15).And you know what? My new prayer habit is in motion.—Chris Mizrany

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Procrastination is “the act of willfully delaying the doing of something that should be done.” … One cure for procrastination is more diligence, regardless of the task. The Christian should be supremely motivated to be diligent in his work, since he is ultimately serving the Lord. “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men” (Colossians 3:23). ...

The Bible says that when it comes to some things, we should never delay. Jesus taught that reconciling with an offended brother should be done immediately upon our remembrance of the situation. He also said to “settle matters quickly” with our adversaries (Matthew 5:23–25). …

Christians must not procrastinate when it comes to sharing the gospel with the lost. There is no time to waste. Jesus likened evangelistic efforts to a man inviting people to a great banquet. As he sent out his servants with the invitations, he said, “Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame” (Luke 14:21). The most striking qualities of the invitation are its openness (anyone and everyone was invited) and its urgency (the call to the feast must go out “quickly”).

Life is short, and we do not know what will happen tomorrow (James 4:13–14). … So in the matter of our spiritual life, we dare not procrastinate… And since our service to God motivates all we do, we have no reason to procrastinate.—GotQuestions.org³

Published on Anchor August 2025. Read by Jerry Paladino. Music by John Listen.

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