I stand proudly at my desk and declare my Emancipation from Procrastination, freeing myself from bonds of laziness.

I have a dream, that one day my habitual procrastination, as noted by my mother - whose voice comes back to haunt me with labels such as disorganized, scattered and lazy - will be transformed into an empowering situation where endless to do lists and procrastination temptations will be forever banished to annals of accomplishment. I have a dream today where I recognize that I walk not alone on this path to procrastination but am in fact in excellent company (see Bill Gates above).

This will be day when I sing "My list, 'tis of thee, endless list that plagues me, of thee I sing. List of tasks I don't like to do, list of thorns in my side, from every desktop, let work begin."

And if I'm to change pattern of procrastination. this must become true.

After hours of research, I've finally understood that one of big reasons I've been procrastinating is that I'm focusing only on finishing. So I'll begin to concentrate on starting. All I need to do is keep starting, and finishing will take care of itself. Which brings me to another thing my mother used to say... but I think I'll leave that thought unfinished.

Energized and ready to tackle daunting task of writing this month's newsletter, I'm excited to have broken free from shackles of procrastination that bound me.

Free at last! free at last!... now if only I could find my pen.

Maybe I'll do this tomorrow....

The sermon I was working on was simply marvelous. I can never remember being in greater sermonic form. Everything just seemed to flow. The ideas opened up right before my eyes, which truly delighted me.

I could not wait to preach this sermon come Sunday morning. I was quite sure my congregation would be delighted with this masterpiece.

When ideas slowed in sermon preparation, I simply jumped over to weekly column and began working on it. Like sermon, column was going fantastic. I couldn't believe roll I was on at time.

There are times when you know what you're doing is good. Then there are times when you know what you're doing is great. I had never had a column come together so smoothly and quickly as this one. My readers will be awed with such eloquence.

When I was stuck on my column, I switched over to magazine article I was writing. In a few moments, I was completely emerged in writing article. Like sermon and column before it, article unfolded before me like a rose in June. I luxuriated in aroma of greatness.

By this time, I was feeling pretty good about myself. This should have been a flashing red light for me. In my defense, I was assuming new year brought new rules for me.

I've given it an awful lot of thought; I do not know what happened next.

But, evidently, I pressed a button I should not have pressed. In next second, my computer shut off completely. For several minutes, I just stared, dumbfounded, at my blank computer screen — one blank to another.

When I came to my senses, I restarted my computer. No matter how diligently I searched, those three files were nowhere to be found. The question plaguing my tortured mind was, do files that are not saved go to hell? They surely were not on my computer.

The thing bothering me most was, I could not remember details of my sermon, my column, or terrific article I was writing. It was as if my magnificent trio did not exist.

In pondering my quandary, a scripture verse came to mind. "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." (1 Corinthians 10:12-13 KJV.)

No matter how difficult my life seems, Jesus is "escape key" that enables me to endure.