So of course, you've at least heard of Noah, you know the one with the ark and all the Animals... not to be confused with the somewhat humorous 2007 Steve Carell movie, Evan Almighty. You know the one with Morgan Freeman (Who Doesn't LOVE THAT Man!?!?!) and Lauren Graham who makes me pee my pants laughing Nearly every time she speaks... most know her as Lorelai on Gilmore Girls.
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ANYWAY, I have decided he(Noah) is a prime example of a God chosen Procrastinator! Yup, I said it, God Blessed a Procrastinator! (*Boom, Crack, Sizzle!!! Lightening from Heaven Smites Me Where I Sit*... Okay maybe that didn't actually happen) So anyway, God comes to Noah and says, "Like, yo Brother Noah! I like, totally dig the walks we take together but like, mankind it totally sinnin' too much! So I'm, like gonna cause Global Warming and melt the ice caps so the oceans will rise and like, baptize the whole Earth for a few months. But you're totally like, my BFF, so I'm giving you a heads up so you can, like build an Ark and survive... Oh yeah and you're going to bring along a few of my animals too." Okay so Maybe he didn't phrase it Quite Like That... But you get the idea.
Can you imagine Noah's response?... Well apart from saying "Sure thing G'Man!" I imagine he was Super Excited to rummage out the tool box his wife got him for Christmas five years prior and cut the price tags off! Okay maybe not, they didn't have Christmas yet... How depressing! *Smacks Forehead*... Will not get sidetracked again! So he started building the Ark.
Then we skip to the next chapter and Noah is "in his 600th year of life" and Papa G starts sending the animals to him... Did you Catch that? Noah was 600 Before the Ark was finished and ready to float!!!... Now I've always considered God to be a pretty smart being, all knowing etc etc. I therefore think it would be very unlikely that he would come to a Noah in say his 599th year of life and say, "Dude, Let me hold your walker while you build this Colossal Ark!" That said, the Bible does not specifically say how long it took Noah to build the ark. When Noah is first mentioned in Genesis 5:32, he was 500 years old. When Noah entered the ark, he was 600 years old. The time it took to build the ark would depend on how much time had passed between Genesis 5:32 and the time that God commanded Noah to build the ark (Genesis 6:14-21). So we're looking at 100 Years to build an Ark. Now, I'll give the guy a little leeway because he is so old and probably not as spry as he once had been in his youth, and he didn't exactly have Sears Tool Center and it was a pretty big Ark. But 100 Years?... Really Noah? God only gave the Animals 7 Days to get to the Ark... So Unfair... Those Poor Creatures!
In my opinion, Noah was a bit scatter brained, easily distracted, and a huge procrastinator. (But in all honesty I imagine were I to live to be 600, I would be pretty wild myself). I'm really no better than Noah though... the Bible says he literally walked with God and I certainly can't say that much.
So where am I going with this post?... Well I think the lesson I've learned is that sometimes God can use our seeming scatter braininess, and distractions to get our attention and show us what he really wants us to see. Now-a-days we don't live for 600+ years to gradually learn to listen to God and follow his callings and directions for our lives. Yet, how often do we honestly take a break from our busy schedules to sit down and honestly listen to what he is whispering? However, the Bible also warns against procrastination. Proverbs 13:4 says this, "The sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied" (the word Sluggard makes me laugh... I just picture a slug shriveling up on the sidewalk after someone sprinkled salt on it... Not that I would Ever Do That!) and Colossians 3:23 tell us, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men".
For me I have felt like God is calling me back to his side these last few weeks in South Africa. Even though I'm here as a missionary serving, it has been hard for me to not have my Small Group family on a weekly basis, or a Church where I feel truly connected. Thankfully, this week I got more connected with Hillsong Church Cape Town, and even got connected with a Hillsong Connect group which will be meeting locally starting in April. The procrastination is something I know I need to work on because unlike Noah I do not have 100 years to complete my school work. However, I rather enjoy being a little Scatter Brained and Easily Distracted, it makes life just a little more interesting. However, my goal is to provide enough personal time for God in my daily life so he doesn't have to resort to petty distractions to draw me closer to him.
My challenge for you is to consider your life and how you spend your days. Are you providing God ample time in your daily life or are you forcing him to distract you from the work you continually put off till the last minute, then prioritize above Him?
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