Loafing With Jesus

I heard a joke when I was in the Boy Scouts 55 years ago.

It must have stuck with me because yesterday reminded me of it.

Seems this kid owned a dog with a long tail. The kid wanted to shorten the dog’s tail but he didn’t want to hurt his dog too much.

So .he cut the dogs tail off—an inch at a time!

Today, I am that dog!

Back on June 24^th I tried to post a scanned photo of my To-Do list to show how busy I’d been working and what a good boy I am.

Then, I could not figure out how to post a picture with my new computer—but I can now:

My current To-Do list runs even longer than the scanned one, and feels more complex, and contains no blacked out entries.

I spent yesterday getting nothing done. Every task I approached stymied me. Each time I started work something cropped up.

Being a project oriented guy, this drove me nuts. When approaching any task, I feel compelled to get it over and done with. I hate working in fits and starts, bits and pieces. An inch at a time.

When work overwhelms me and I don’t know where to start, it paralyzes me.

Yesterday I got virtually no work done so I feel guilty.

This feeling is a satanic trap.

I feel I should get a lot accomplished because I’m me.

I treasure such high expectations of me that when me fails to meet them me disappoints me and guilt ensues. I feel crummy because I’m me and I expect so much of me because I’m secretly great. And I could show it if I could get done all the stuff I want to get done.

Does that make any sense?

Yesterday as I berated my self for not being Superman, the devil whispered in my ear, “Work for the night cometh wherein no man can work”.

I thought that was a Bible verse, but it’s not. I believe it’s an old Puritan motto. But it condemned me nevertheless. I want to get stuff done! None of this inch-at-a-time crap for me. I want it done and over with.

But as I fumed in frustration, a real Bible verse came to my mind:

King Solomon said, “There is nothing better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labor”.

And here I’ve been pushing and straining so I can scratch another chore off my list.

That’s a hard way to live.

Then came to my mind the words of Jesus, “Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy , and my burden is light”.

Well, that’s fine for Him to say. But I’ve got things to do. Important things. And I’m not getting them done. Work is piling up on me.

Looks like if I’m doing God’s work, then I could expect a little help down here.

Am I doing God’s work?

Apparently not.

I’m tacking my own projects and plans onto His coattails like a KICK ME sign.

He doesn’t play my game.

That’s why I get so frustrated.

So, just what is God’s work?

When some folks asked Jesus that very same question, He said, “This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent”.

Oh.

That’s something different from what I had in mind.

All this stuff is too deep for me. So I shut down my computer and read a murder mystery all yesterday afternoon.

Relax.

Jesus said it’s ok.

***

One thing did get accomplished late yesterday afternoon. A young lady from our neighborhood crime watch came over and crafted some flyers advertising a local history speech I’m scheduled to give next week. I have not mastered this new computer’s different way of doing things so I doubt if I could have produced the flyers without her help. Thanks, Twila.