One of the dangers of doing a project that really shouldn’t be done is that once started, projects tend to take on a life of their own. Someone observed that the mere regularity of an activity gradually gives it the quality of “oughtness.”
By that he meant, after a while people will feel they ought to do something simply because they’ve always done it. People begin to say, “We ought not to let this thing die. We’ve been doing it such a long time.” It’s one of the reasons for ever expanding government and taxation. Its also the only reason why many organizations and publications that never should have been started in the first place continue on.
Even in our churches, time is often wasted with rituals that long ago lost their meaning, but are continued because of “oughtness.”
Thoughtfully evaluating how God wants you to use your time and avoiding the “oughts” trap will help redeem the time.
Rick Grubbs is best known as the host of “Redeeming the Time,” a one-minute radio program featured on hundreds of radio outlets around the world. He has spoken thousands of times on Biblical time management in all 50 states and 26 other countries. He is the author of the book “Morning Momentum: God’s plan for launching an unstoppable day”. He and his wife Carrie live in Salisbury NC with several of their 12 children.
