I will be the first to admit that though I love writing, getting into ‘the zone’ of writing is terribly hard. It’s an internal war every time I attempt to start a paper, because as much as I really want to start, I become too nervous to start. I have too many different ideas swarming in my head, I don’t feel motivated, and I just cannot stay focused. The very moment I sit down, I try to find every excuse to not start writing. And if I do start writing, I reward myself every five minutes by sending snapchats, texts, and FaceBook messages. Chronic procrastination then takes over, and my essay is left in the dust.

Writing can be a true struggle, and I completely sympathize with everyone who feels the pain of starting a paper and eventually waiting until the very last minute to get it done.

So, what gives me the encouragement to start writing when I feel no inspiration at all? What helps me to continue writing even though I feel like it is impossible to finish by the deadline? What keeps me writing even when I feel like I’m writing the worst paper ever?

The answers are all from the Word of God! I know that many of us right now are dealing with many writing assignment deadlines, wondering how they are ever going to get finished if we are procrastinating as it is. Well let me assure you that with encouragement straight from God, you will finish every assignment, and you will look back and truly marvel at how God does miracles even in our homework assignments! He will come through for you if you trust in Him!

These verses will comfort you, for they demonstrate that God understands your weaknesses. He will help you when you just call to Him in your time of distress (aka when you've run out of ideas and still have to write 3 more pages to reach the page count minimum!).

He will help you succeed even when you feel like a failure. He will give you original writing ideas. Human impossibility calls for divine possibility, and with God, all things are possible!

Be encouraged:

Hebrews 4:15-16

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."

God understands your struggle with procrastination because Jesus was tempted in the very same way, yet He did not sin like us. Because he understands, He wants to extend you His mercy and grace to help you in your areas of weakness. God promises you that He will hear you and He will help you.

Daniel 10:19

"Do not be afraid, you who are highly esteemed," he said. "Peace! Be strong now; be strong." When he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, "Speak, my lord, since you have given me strength."

When an essay seems way too overwhelming for you to handle and you begin to feel anxious about writing, God promises you His peace that makes you strong. You are His highly beloved child and He desires to give you strength to overcome every obstacle - your procrastination is no match for the mighty power of God!

Matthew 26:41

"Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."

This verse speaks so accurately to procrastinators like myself! I truly desire to write an essay, but my flesh is weak, and I find that I easily cave into distractions. But God says to watch and pray! Temptation can come over you so sneakily you fail to realize you're distracted, but once you are, you're trapped in it. Before you start an essay, pray that you will not fall into all that's out there vying for your attention; your essay needs to get done!

1 Corinthians 10:13-14

"No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it."

Do you ever just feel like you cannot handle all the temptations out there that so easily steal your attention away from writing your essay? When you feel like you're about to give into all those temptations, know that God will provide a way out so that you can get back to writing without being distracted. God is faithful and will help protect you from caving into distractions if you pray and rely on Him to help you in your areas of temptation. Don't try to rely on your own efforts to fight distraction.

2 Corinthians 12:9

"But [Christ] said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me"

I feel so weak and such a failure when it comes to my problem of procrastinating at writing papers - but God promises that His power will come through for me in my areas of weakness! The same goes for you. God's grace for you is so abundant. He loves to make you strong in areas that you feel weak in, so that when you do get that A on an essay you thought you failed at, you know for sure that it was God's strength and grace who accomplished that through you!

Psalms 120:1

"I call on the Lord in my distress, and He answers me!"

Do you feel like you've fallen too far - that you've procrastinated way too many times for God to hear you? Well, God's help is unconditional. He doesn't ignore you just because you've made the same mistake a million times. He will always answer you when you call to Him for help. So if you feel like you can't finish a paper and you really need His help, just ask Him! It's that simple.

Romans 8:11

"And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you."

God's answer to you when ask Him for help in writing your essay is this: God's very Spirit, His very Being, is in you as you write. His Spirit is the One who raised Christ from the dead, the very Being who brought the world to life. If He can do such great and marvelous works, can He not also help you finish your essay and help you write it well?

Psalms 145:9

"The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made."

As long as you're a human being, you qualify, for you were made by God, and this verse assures you that God is good to everything He's made. God's goodness far exceeds human measurement of goodness. He isn't just 'nice,' or 'cool,' He is Good. The very essence of goodness. The very essence of compassion. He sees you and doesn't just feel sorry for you; no, God's goodness and compassion picks you up from your ditch and restores you to a place of peace and wholeness. He will pick you up when you're too discouraged to start/finish your essay and help you to excel!

2 Corinthians 4:16

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day."

Maybe you're discouraged like me when I've procrastinated yet again on the hundredth essay of the semester. God's so good though, He doesn't look at me and wag His finger saying, "There you go again! When are you ever going to learn?" He reminds me saying that though I am human and imperfect, He is renewing my spirit on the inside everyday. I can take heart knowing that God will patiently work in my heart and will help me to overcome issues like my procrastination.

John 19:30

Jesus said, "It is finished."

When Jesus came and died for you and me, He conquered everything in life that holds us back - including bad habits like procrastination. Therefore, when you look at your essay and feel like it won't ever get done, step back and look at the bigger picture. The bigger picture is that if God loves you enough to give up His own son for you on the cross, then He loves you enough to help you finish writing your paper. Just as Christ said on the cross, "It is finished," so you, too, will finish your essay with God's help. Don't give up, don't feel down, and you will soon be done with your paper and say, "It is finished!"