“The best thing you can do right now is to finish what you started last year and not let those good intentions grow stale. Your heart’s been in the right place all along. You’ve got what it takes to finish it up, so go to it. Once the commitment is clear, you do what you can, not what you can’t.”

2 Corinthians 8:10-12 MSG.

Whatever task God has given you to do, you need to finish it – even if the world around you is pressing in as it seems to be spinning out of control.

When God calls you to a specific task – a gift to share, a group to speak to, an individual to reach out to – He’s called you to DO it.

Of course, it’s easy to talk about it or plan and think about the steps involved. It may even be easy to take the first few steps. But finishing, well, that can be challenging.

Finishing involves persevering when things come against you. And when you’re following God’s plan for your life, things WILL come against you.

The enemy loves to toy with your to-do list, your priorities. He will highlight anything he can to take your eyes and your action away from the one thing God is wanting you to finish.

Satan loves to see God’s children procrastinate – to ignore the urgency of God’s request by dismissing it or focusing on other things.

Of course, you need to be aware of what’s happening in the world. You need to feel the shock waves in your heart when evil attacks the innocent and cry out to God for mercy, for Him to rescue them. You need to pray.

And you need to honor God by taking steps to complete what He’s given you to do.

Don’t stumble over your list, others’ expectations and demands, or the enemy’s highlighted choices. Don’t focus on the chaos of the world. Fix your eyes on God and what He’s calling you do.

Oh, precious soul, when God calls you to do something, you need to trust that He has His reasons and it’s important enough to warrant His attention and concern. Your task has merit in His Kingdom. And it’s an honor for you to be chosen for the task! He’s going to bless you for your obedience and the blessing isn’t going to just involve you – others will be blessed by it too.

But if you delay or your urgency to finish the task grows stale, you may miss His perfect timing and the blessing altogether. And others may miss it as well.

So, take a deep breath and in the name of Jesus Christ, command Satan to get behind you. Drop to your knees and pray for those in the midst of the chaos and those the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. And then get to work.

Get to work finishing what you started. Get to work obeying your Heavenly Father who has already blessed you by giving you this specific task.

And watch and see what He will do when you finish strong by putting Him first.