I feel like I can say confidently that most adults find laziness frustrating. I’ve even seen this to be true for adults who personally fall into the “lazy” category themselves. (Why else would same-day delivery be so frustrating for us when it fails?!)

So when I signed up for a parenting workshop specifically designed to help parents troubleshoot issues like laziness with their children, you can imagine how excited I was. I was SO ready to be with other adults who struggled with their kiddos’ lazy tendencies. I imagined we’d get a moment to vent about how many socks we pick up every day and who had the record for most “trash take out” reminders given.

I was SO ready to be reassured that I wasn’t the problem.

Then the workshop began. And I quickly realized that I am the problem.

This workshop was all about teaching parents to help their kids grow executive functioning skills. Executive functioning skills are abilities and processes (such as memory, self-control, planning, organizing, time management, and more) that grow as a child’s brain develops. And—spoiler alert—the big takeaway for us as parents was that we need to model these skills calmly, patiently, and kindly over and over again.

I really didn’t want to hear that.

I wanted the facilitator to tell me the right words to say so I only have to say something ONCE.

I wanted the other parents to groan and vent with me about how hard it is to be a parent.

I wanted someone, ANYONE, to tell me it’s okay to curl up in bed while the socks pile up for a week.

The truth is that I wanted permission to be lazy and give up on the hard stuff.

There are a million reasons why a person might be wishing the same right now. Maybe YOU are that person. And maybe you are holding your breath right now, hoping I give you the green light to be lazy and give up on your hard stuff.

But the facilitator was right not to give me an “out” the day of that workshop, and I’m not going to give you one today either. Instead, I’m going to share with you an even better option: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters” (Colossians 3:23).

Overwhelm, exhaustion, frustration, anxiety, depression, ADHD, low self-esteem, underdeveloped executive function, etc. happen to all of us as we serve each other in this life. And many days those feelings and circumstances might make us feel like giving up. However, the reality is that we serve an incredibly generous God who has never stopped helping, loving, and forgiving us. That realization is where our anti-lazy serum comes from. That’s how we overcome the hard stuff and the moments where we just … can’t. Jesus never once gave up on us, even when it meant his own death.

So the next time you feel the urge to shut down and let the lazy “craving” win, I want you to try this:

1. Pause, close your eyes, and take a deep breath.
2. Talk to God about it: the frustrations, the overwhelm, the rage, the unfairness, the exhaustion, the anxiety, everything. Tell him you are ready to quit and need him to help you keep going. Ask him to give you his strength.
3. Open your eyes and do the very first step of the task you are wanting to opt out of.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 as often as needed to get through the whole thing.

Jesus loves you, and so do we.

You are not in this alone.

Do the hard thing one step at a time, and tell us about it so we can pray with you through it all.