There’s no better time than the present. I heard that statement a lot when I was young; usually when I was procrastinating in doing something that my mom or dad asked me to do. Let’s face it, there are times we just want to put things off. Most of us can find something else to do instead of mowing the lawn, cleaning garage or house, painting our home, or doing laundry. We would just rather do something else that seems more fun and beneficial. But procrastination is a habit that really only creates strife and stress in our lives.

This week I want to take a look at some areas in our lives where we need to apply this habit of “there’s no better time than the present”. One area that comes to mind is studying the Word of God. “Now is the time” indicates the present time – it’s called today. Every day we should spend time with God; read His Word, pray, talk with Him and ask Him for His help. Joshua 1:8 teaches us to meditate on the Word day and night, and to do all that is written, and then we make our way prosperous, and will have good success. The truth in this Scripture gives us instructions in how to live our lives to attain the best that God has for us: meditate on His Word, obey His Word, and receive His blessings. I know from my own life that my days go a lot better when I am diligent to do so.

The word diligent carries the characteristic of being steady and earnest in what one is doing. Therefore to study the Word with diligence would mean to not be half-hearted about it but put our whole heart and soul into learning the Word of God. To obey the Word is to be done as a daily life style, not just part of the time.

In my earlier years of learning Bible truths I learned that our thoughts control our words and our behavior. Therefore I looked for Scriptures to help me. I soon discovered that whatever fills my heart in abundance is what will appear in my speech and behavior. The Bible tells us that we become what we think in our heart. (Proverbs 23:7) So I began to think about what I was thinking about. Otherwise better known as monitoring my thoughts.

We need to pay close attention to what we are thinking, all the time, so we can bring each thought under the scrutiny of the Word of God. A good place to start is to use Philippians 4:8 as a measuring stick for our thoughts. We are instructed to think on things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, and that has virtue. Matthew 12:34 and Luke 6:45 both teach that whatever is in our heart in abundance is what our mouth speaks. The key word here is abundance.

If we find that our thoughts and imaginations have gotten off track by exalting themselves against the knowledge of God, then we need to bring them into captivity by rebuking those thoughts and casting them down, and renewing our thoughts to the obedience of Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5) The way we renew our minds is by reading and learning God’s Word. Learning the Word of God is what gives us the help we need to discern the nature of our thoughts. Learning the Word of God is what builds our faith to believe for the promises of God to be evident in our lives.

We live in a world that is full of information and easily to attain, so why is it that most people don’t know and understand what the Bible says. It’s because they don’t spend enough time with God’s Word. An hour once or twice a week is not sufficient time to really get the Word of God into our hearts in abundance. That’s just the simple truth of the fact. Whatever we give the most attention to is what will come to pass in our lives.

So I submit to you that there is no better time than the present to draw close to God. No better time to learn His Word and know His promises. No better time to be kind, to pray, and no better time than the present to obey His calling to love and forgive others as He loves and forgives us.