What do you do when your garden needs attention, but you can’t afford a gardener? What do you do when you have a job to do, but don’t have the time to do it? …
You make the most of it. You do the best you can with what you’ve got. If you can’t pay someone to do it, then you roll up your sleeves and do it yourself to the best of your ability. Obviously, if the job requires a level of expertise that you don’t have, then you might not be able to do it yourself. But I’ve found that most of the time we can do something … Just do something. If you don’t have a lawnmower you can at least neaten up the flower beds and trim the trees. Whatever you can do, do it with all your might. Give it your best shot!
You see, when we neglect things, there’s a principle at work. If you begin to neglect one thing, then you might find yourself getting into a cycle of neglect. You stop giving attention to things that need attention. Don’t go there! It’s a downward spiral! Not good!
Need to get fit, but can’t afford to join the gym? … Run around the block. Living in a dangerous area, so running around the block is dangerous? … Get a skipping rope and skip in your house. Struggle with skipping? Problems with your knees? … Exercise in your room. If you have a swimming pool, swim some laps.
Just start by making a list of all the things that need attention. Then give attention to one thing at a time. As you do this, little things in your life will begin to get better bit by bit. Your surroundings will change bit by bit. And before you know it you will be feeling more encouraged and enthusiastic about life. It will increase your self-worth.
Don’t have time to do it? Think of something you are doing that’s not adding value to your life. Or maybe you are spending more time on something than is necessary. Just grab the pruners and trim one tree today. And it’s not just for the garden. It’s for any area of your life.
But if you let things slide you will find yourself getting lazier and lazier. Your world will begin to get smaller and smaller. One can easily get accustomed to seeing broken things around you. Not good! The end of that road is not good! Don’t go there! Don’t let it become your culture!
And if you have children still living at home with you, they are absorbing whatever culture you create in your home. So if it’s broken and it doesn’t bother you, just fix it for their sakes. Teach them a good, healthy, productive, excellent culture. Never let them pick up a lazy, “just leave it broken” culture. That kind of culture often goes with ‘dirty’, ‘messy’, ‘unhygienic’ and a poverty mindset. It will never produce success in anyone’s life. Never.
You see, excellence is a lifestyle, not a duty. It’s good for you! Make it your lifestyle. And here’s the thing: It doesn’t have to be perfect. The Lord doesn’t honour perfection. He honours diligence. That means if you just do the best you can with what you’ve got, He will put His blessing on it and put you on the road to success. It won’t take long, and you will begin to see your life improve one step at a time.
