Habitual Lateness (Apply in Any Area of Life)

Everyone is late once in a while - flat tires, kids, bad directions. Habitual lateness, however, is unhealthy in the workplace/ministry. Please read the following notes to better understand this issue.

Prayerfully review your own habits as you consider continuing your respective tasks. We are committed to pursuing excellence in all areas, including how we approach our  job/ministry responsibilities.

Habitual Lateness is often a sign of…

Pride

Being late (without a valid reason) communicates, “Your time is not as important as mine,” or, “I don’t need to work as much as you do.” Both are issues of pride. Scripture is very clear on how God feels about pride - He despises it! Pride is often a primary cause of habitual lateness.

• "For whoever exalts himself will be humbled..." Matthew 23:12 (See also Proverbs 8:13, Proverbs 16:18, Daniel 4:37 and more…!)

Selfishness

Being late displays our tendency to want to be served, rather than be a servant. “I’ll come once you guys are finished setting up for me,” or, “It doesn’t matter if you guys need me here, I’ll come when I want to.”

• “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.” (Phil 2:3-5; see also vs. 6-11 & Matthew 23:11)

Laziness

Being habitually late may be due to not putting forth the appropriate effort that should be afforded to any act of ministry.

• “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.” (Col 3:23)

Disorder

When others are relying on you and you consistently miss the assigned arrival time, you are impeding the order that is necessary for a service to be effective. People’s lives and souls are at stake.

• “But be sure that everything is done properly and in order.” 1 Corinthians 14:40 (Referring to a church/worship setting.)

Disrespect

How we treat others is very important to God. When others are on time and you consistently show up late, you are showing disrespect toward everyone on your team.

Finally, please do not let the tardiness of others influence you. It does NOT matter what anyone else is doing - how you act out your faith and obedience is your responsibility, not anyone else’s.

Thank you for your careful consideration of this issue!