Let’s examine the five urges we need to resist. An urge, as you know, is a strong desire or impulse. And all-too-often we are victims of our strong desires or impulses—our urges—which take us down the wrong path and cause trouble. We all have them, so I simply want to point out some urges we need to be aware of and by God’s grace, resist.

Resist the urge to let your emotions and enthusiasm launch you into unwise action.

I admit too often this has been my modus operandi. I get a bright idea, an emotional urge, and I think it must be the right thing to do because I feel so strongly about it. And then, without proper thought or consideration or prayer, I plunge headlong into a project that is either unwise or poorly planned.

Certainly, we want to be people of action; we don’t want to be handicapped by fear of making the wrong move. Walking by faith will take us outside our comfort zones and lead us to attempt things that can only be done with God’s help. Following Jesus is never risk-free. But at the same time, the Bible tells us God does things decently and in order, and we need to be cautious not to move too quickly based mainly on how we feel. Someone has said feelings have zero IQ, meaning they may be strong but they’re not necessarily smart.

Here is one thing I’ve learned that has helped to curb my tendency to launch into something prematurely, and it’s pretty simple: Just sleep on it. It may look like the greatest idea you’ve ever had today, but a good night’s sleep could totally change your perspective. That may mean literally wait until tomorrow, or it may mean keep sleeping on it until you have clearer thoughts and plans.

Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed (Proverbs 15:22).

If your plan is of God, it will stand the test of time. Seek counsel from the right people, and of course, mainly seek God’s counsel. You can save yourself a lot of trouble and avoid wasted time if you resist the urge to launch into something based solely on your emotions.