Time management

“He who gathers crops in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son.” Proverbs 10:5
These days many people attend courses on time management. Solomon had some wise things to say about it, which we find in the book of Proverbs. He says it is wise to gather crops in summer, but disgraceful to sleep during harvest. For those of us who don’t work on a farm, this might sound irrelevant, but the principle is just as relevant today as it was when Solomon wrote it.
Crops are usually gathered in autumn. To gather them in summer would be to gather them ahead of time. On the other hand, if they still have not been harvested by winter, it’s bad news. Here are the lessons for us: Firstly, we need to plan to meet deadlines. It’s part of our integrity, showing that we are faithful to keep our promises by saying we’ll have something done by a certain date. Secondly, if we are able to do the work early, then we should do it. It’s human nature to think, ‘Oh, I don’t have to do that just yet, it can wait.’ But have you noticed how, if you take that attitude towards something, you’ll end up in a mass panic about it as the deadline looms? Other things that are more urgent or have a faster turnaround come up, and that thing that you had time to address earlier gets pushed into the background until it too becomes urgent.
I hope this proverb speaks to you like it did to me this week!