Plate Spinners

Have you ever seen a “Plate Spinner” on television? He or she will come on stage with a huge stack of plates. There are always several six foot poles sticking up out of the stage. The plate spinner will put a plate on the top of a pole and spin the pole. Amazingly the plate spins and stays on the pole. The plate spinner gets another plate and puts it on the second pole. Now there are two. The process is repeated and then there are three, then four, then five, then ten. None of the plates will fall as long as you keep the plates spinning. Eventually there are so many plates and so many poles that the plate spinner cannot get to each plate in a timely way. Eventually the plates start to wobble and fall.

Some people live their life with a plate spinner mentality. There is much to do and many plates that need to be spun. Plan this and do that. Go here and go there. Do this and do that. Yes. Yes. Yes. I will do it! No you will not. You cannot. Eventually the plates will fall.

For all the “Plate Spinners” here are four guidelines that can help you:

1. Think. Spend some time thinking before you do. “First sit down and estimate the cost.” (Luke 14:28). You cannot know you what the right thing is unless you begin by thinking thing through.

2. Prioritize. You cannot do everything. Life is about picking the important things. Do the less important things when you can, life is about priorities. Jesus said that not all commands should be given the same weight. There is a “greatest commandment.” (Matt 22:36). Unless you learn this principle the important things of life will be left undone because of the urgent things.

3. Follow through. Once you have a plan, follow the plan. There is an children’s question that asks, “If there are six men on a log and two of them decide to get up and go to town, how many men are still on the log?” The answer is six. Just because they decide to does not mean that they have.

4. Decide to get over the stuff you let go. Do not waste today’s precious time regretting the stuff you decided not to do – even if you made a bad call. We all make mistakes. Do not pile yesterday’s worry onto today’s agenda. Jesus said, Matt “Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (6:34).
   

Lonnie Davis

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