"There is nothing I cannot master with the help of Christ who gives me strength."  (Philippians 4:13 JB)

The Bible gives us five actions we can take to stop procrastinating:

1. Stop making excuses. "The lazy man is full of excuses" (Proverbs 22:13 LB). What have you been saying you're going to do "one of these days"? What do you make excuses about? The number one excuse I hear is, "When things settle down, then I'm going to ..." Things will never settle down. You must make a choice to prioritize what is important.

2. Start today. Not next month, next week, or tomorrow. "Never boast about tomorrow. You don't know what will happen between now and then" (Proverbs 27:1 GNT). None of us is guaranteed a tomorrow.

3. Establish a planned schedule. Proverbs 13:16 says, "A wise man plans ahead. A fool doesn't" (LB). If you fail to plan, you're planning to fail. You need to designate some specific time slots each week for the things you need to do. Whatever it is, put it on your calendar. And if it's a big task, break it down into small pieces. Break it into bite-size pieces.

4. Face your fears. We hate to admit we have fears, because we think they're a sign of weakness. But fear is a sign of humanity. Only fools are not afraid. You've heard it said, "Courage is not the absence of fear; it's moving ahead in spite of our fears." The Bible says there is nothing you cannot master with the help of Christ who gives you strength.

5. Focus on what you gain, not the pain. There are very few things in life that are easy. You must push through the frustration and look at the gain beyond the pain. Concentrate on how good you're going to feel once you've finished the task.

Galatians 6:9 says, "So let us not become tired of doing good; for if we do not give up, the time will come when we reap a harvest" (NLT).

Jesus never said life would be easy. There will be sacrifice and commitment. But there is tremendous reward when we do the things he calls us to do.

Talk About It

- Don't ask, "What do I feel like doing?" Instead ask, "What does God want me to do?"

- I want you to write down three things you know God wants you to do, one item each in these three areas: your family, your personal life, and your career. Choose one of those three, and start today. Even if you can only work on your goal 15 minutes a day, do it - you'll feel so much better!

Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., one of America's largest and most influential churches. Rick is author of the New York Times bestseller "The Purpose Driven Life." His book, "The Purpose Driven Church," was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. He is also the founder of Pastors.com, a global Internet community for pastors.

This devotional © 2013 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

"Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:6 NIV)

We humans are great starters but often bad finishers. We leave unfinished symphonies, unfinished buildings, unfinished books, unfinished projects. We may not always finish what we start, but God always finishes what he starts.

God doesn't create a bird and give him half a wing. He didn't create an unfinished flower or an unfinished star. He puts the finishing touches on everything he does, and then he says, "It is good."

The Bible says when Jesus Christ starts working in your life, he will complete what he started, in spite of the hang-ups, faults, bad decisions, sins, and circumstances that we face. One day, when we get to Heaven, we're going to become just like Jesus, because we will see him as he is. And that's the goal.

In the meantime, if we want to enjoy the people in our lives, we need to be patient with their progress. We must allow for their growth and development. Paul could say, "I'm not the man I used to be, thank God. But also, thank God, I'm not the man I'm going to be. I'm growing and changing."

If you want to enjoy your marriage, you've got to learn to enjoy your husband or your wife right now while allowing for growth and development. Otherwise, by the time they meet your conditions, you will have still another condition for them to meet.

Parents, if you're going to learn to enjoy your kids, you've got to learn to enjoy them in the process while they're growing, because there is no such thing as a perfect kid.

And there's no such thing as a perfect adult. If you demand perfection of the people in your life in order to enjoy them, you're going to be miserable for the rest of your life. Nobody's perfect.

Talk About It

- To whom do you need to show grace today, understanding that God is still working in his or her life, in his own time and his own way?

- Knowing Christ will finish what he started in you, what role do you think he wants you to play in your progress? What steps do you need to take toward spiritual growth?

Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., one of America's largest and most influential churches. Rick is author of the New York Times bestseller "The Purpose Driven Life." His book, "The Purpose Driven Church," was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. He is also the founder of Pastors.com, a global Internet community for pastors.

This devotional © 2013 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

"Strengthen yourselves so that you will live here on earth doing what God wants, not the evil things people want." (1 Peter 4:2 NCV)

What are you doing to fortify your faith? Here are just a few things you could be doing:

Study the Bible. We need to make his Word a part of our lives. God's Word is inspired, and it will help you to be fully equipped to do everything he wants you to do.

Maintain a quiet time. How are you doing with your quiet time? For some of you, that's a guilt-inducing statement. I think that may be because you're trying to have a quiet time like someone taught you long ago, but the method you were taught doesn't fit the way God shaped you. What do you need to do to spend some daily time in God's Word?

Read Christian books. Do yourself a favor, and learn all you can. Keep feeding your soul with what other believers have to say. If all I do is study the Bible for myself and don't listen to what other believers have to say about it, I'm not gaining from the wisdom and experience of other believers. 

Keep your testimony fresh. What is God doing in your life? When was the last time you wrote out your testimony? If you write it out, God will give you the chance to share it. When you share your testimony with others, it fortifies your faith. 

Be faithful to a small group of believers. The Bible says we should "encourage one another and build each other up" (1 Thessalonians 5:11a NIV). We are in a marathon of faith, and we need to run together. We need the support and encouragement of other believers.

Talk About It

- What is your plan for regular Bible study?

- Talk with your small group, and make a list of great Christian books to read.

- Take time this week to write out your testimony. It doesn't have to be long. Share it with some Christian friends so they can help you focus what you're trying to say.

- Talk about ways to encourage each other in your small group.

Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., one of America's largest and most influential churches. Rick is author of the New York Times bestseller "The Purpose Driven Life." His book, "The Purpose Driven Church," was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. He is also the founder of Pastors.com, a global Internet community for pastors.

This devotional © 2013 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.