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Pitfall, according to the Oxford Advanced Learners' Dictionary is a danger or difficulty especially one that is hidden or not obvious at first, i.e., danger that is about to occur. Hence, enticing pitfalls are those pleasant, attractive, mouthwatering and packaged dangers, that are yet to to be revealed as downfalls or not thought of as dangers in the first place, maybe because of ignorance. To evade these enticing pitfalls simply means escaping from, or avoiding the pitfalls, it is finding a way of not falling into the dangers.
Pitfalls come in different natures, all to hinder the growth of a person (believer) and to prevent him/her from reaching unto greatness. In order to experience the exceeding fruitfulness and total restoration from God, the following are the enticing pitfalls a Christian MUST avoid.
1. Procrastination
This simply means a delay in doing something that one should do usually because you don't want to do it. It is a deliberate postponement caused by laziness. Any good action that is delayed or postponed amounts to sin.
Procrastination results in regrets when one realizes that he does not have all the time of this world he assumed to have had. In order to evade this pitfall, the moment a particular thing which needs urgent attention has been identified, act on it at the least available opportunity, for the greatest losses of all are those derived from missed opportunities.
2. Associating With Time Wastage
Overallocation of time to a specific task amounts to time wastage. Prudent use of each period of one's life brings fulfilment to a person. It is confirmed that one may end up wasting his time if found indulging in the following pointers to time wastage:
*Aimless Visitation:
Visiting people or friends aimlessly makes one to lose self-worth before men. Such a person is seen as an unserious human being. He ends up wasting his time, and that of his friends, thus becoming a burden of intrusion to other people. To avoid this, always get busy with serious issues of life. Even when there is nothing to be busy about, there is always something to be busy with. Those books you are yet to read and the bible are there to cover.
*Becoming Too Friendly with Electronic Gadgets:
These include your televisions, laptops and cell phones. Attending to these gadgets equips you with the necessary information you need to live with as far as your environment is concerned. But when these devices make you abandon important tasks as a result of spending more time on them, it can only amount to time wastage, and time wasted can never be regained. Today, it is discovered that young men and women, even school children tend to devote more time on their phones than their bibles and textbooks. This is an enticing pitfall on its own that is capable of depriving a christian the opportunity of getting the deeper knowledge of who God is, and what life really entails.
*Developing An Unworkable Schedule:
Your daily, weekly, monthly and yearly schedule that is not achievable is unworkable. A building is not erected in a day. It is good to dream big, but when you wake up, be realistic and begin from where you have the grace and strength. List out those things that are sure of becoming reality by arranging them in their order of priority. Attention should not be paid to those things that yield no results. However, keep yourself in constant stock-taking to see if you have been able to achieve a greater percentage of your set goals, if not, re-strategize.