Stand Guard

In anything that you do, vigilance is required to maintain the standard, to say nothing of improving. You must be like the night watchman: ever scanning the horizon for threats, constantly checking your fortifications for weaknesses. Let’s talking about standing guard on your own life.

Vigilance

Every day, everything you want is under attack. You are assaulted by temptations, by weaknesses, by everything inside you that tells you it’s ok to slack off just this once. This is where vigilance comes in. Much like the guard standing watch, it is NEVER ok to slack off for even a moment. It is never acceptable to give yourself a pass “just this once,” to do half the workout or skip it, to finish that project late, or to lose your temper just because you were “extra stressed.”

Mistakes inevitably happen to all of us, no matter how vigilant we are. But mistakes are not the same thing is laziness, as lack of will. A mistake is something you do unintentionally, and most often still with the best intentions. That is NOT the same thing as falling asleep on watch and letting the enemy slip in: laziness, temptation, weakness, distraction.

You must be the guard standing watch on your own life. No one else is going to do it for you. You may occasionally have like minded people pass by your post and remind you not to nod off, but ultimately the gates are only safe if you guard them at all times.

The Reward

The reward for vigilance, for always being on watch, for never leaving your post or falling asleep, is to not fall behind. To not have to repair your life from the multitude of attempted raids and incursions from the countless enemies outside the walls.

While others are fixing their damage, you are already driving ahead, safe and secure as a result of your refusal to allow any slack. Because you held the line, you don’t have to make up that lost ground. Because you didn’t allow a single “just one” to happen to you, you don’t have any extra work to do just to get back to where you were.

Your reward is that you get to get up tomorrow and get forward just a little bit more, because you held the line today.

Where Do You Stand Guard?

As always, I want to hear from all of you. Tell us about the areas of your life in which you have to be vigilant at all times, and how you maintain your post.