Starting It Off Right
Of all of the things I’ve learned about guarding my time, this is probably the most important. I have often found that when this priority is not in place, nothing else is either. I wouldn’t dare say that I do this one right every time, but I try my hardest. I’m talking about the principle of starting my day off right with a personal time of devotion with the Lord. Even Jesus exemplified this during His earthly ministry. Take a look at Mark 1:35-39: 35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” 38 Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else–to the nearby villages–so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” 39 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. Notice the following elements of this story: It... Read More →
Our family has a dog, Punkin. If any of you have ever met Punkin, you know that he is quite the interesting character. He runs around in circles compulsively, he barks incessantly, and he absolutely loves his toys. As soon as we let him out of his crate, he takes off running around the room, with his current favorite in mouth. But Punkin has an issue (well, more than just one, but we’re only talking about one today). He can never seem to figure out which toy he likes best. As he’s running around, if he sees another toy, he goes and grabs that one. Then on his return trip, he might decide he wants the one he puts down or maybe that fuzzy one on other side of the room. He goes from toy to toy until finally, he is exhausted and lays down.
“What in the world does this have to do with guarding our time,” you ask? Sometimes I can be like Punkin. I sit down to accomplish a task, then another one pops up in my mind and I work on that one. Then, I’m back to my original task. As things pop up in my mind, I have a tendency to stop what I’m doing and change my focus. Finally, at the end of a day I am worn out with nothing to show for it. Once we’ve honestly evaluated our productivity, we’ve got to start setting clear priorities and objectives in a trusted system.
My mind is constantly running - creating, processing, and evaluating. If left to my own devices, I could probably work all day on a different things every 2 minutes. That is neither effective or efficient, nor is it productive or prudent. Setting clear priorities and objectives keeps me focused on completing what is most important. I like to set priorities and objectives for every day, week, month, and year. The key for this working is to utilize a system that works best for you, that you will stick with. My system is centered around a great piece of software (for Mac users) called OmniFocus and loosely based off of the Getting Things Done method . It allows me to keep my workflow organized, while capturing all of the random ideas that can pop into my mind. Omnifocus also syncs with my iPhone which allows me to keep up when I’m away from my laptop. My purpose here is not to explain the intricacies of my system, only to encourage you to customize one of your own. However, I do want to tell you some of the things I’ve found that a system needs in order to work:
- It needs to be complete. The system you setup should be the only one, and it should house all of the different areas of your life.
- It needs to be simple. If it’s too complicated to manage and follow, you’ll never stick with it. It must be something that you can learn to do without thinking about it.
- It needs to be accessible. The system is no good if you cannot get to it. Portability in a system is absolutely key! For example, as I said OmniFocus syncs with my iPhone which allows me to keep track of my priorities away from the office or my computer. But more often than not, I find myself using a simple notebook to capture tasks while I’m out of the office. When I get back to my laptop, I put all the new information into OmniFocus, and it becomes part of my primary system.
- It needs to be up to date. If a system is out of date, it’s of no use and you will not trust it. I make sure my system is up to date every day before I leave the office.
- It needs to be yours. Simply put, this isn’t about using the latest and greatest methodology that’s out there. It’s about you create and customizing the system that works for you!
Hopefully those few points will help you start to set clear priorities and objectives!
How many of you know this person: always running to the next meeting, always on-the-go, and seeming to be part of everything that’s going on. If you ask them how they are, they are always sure to respond something like, “Busy!” or “Exhausted!” They always seem to have a full day ahead and never enough time to get it all done. You can’t quite figure out what they are actually doing, but you know they must be doing it. Does that sound familiar? Truth be told, how many of us have actually been that person?
Recently, one morning, I was reading this passage:
2 Thessalonians 3:6-12 (ESV)
6 Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. 7 For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, 8 nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. 9 It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. 10 For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. 11 For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. 12 Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.
When I looked up the word translated as “busybody”, the definition went something like this, “to bustle about uselessly, to busy one’s self about trifling, needless, useless matters.” Rather than diligently performing the duties they had been assigned, these individuals instead chose to “bustle about uselessly” focusing on other people’s business and other less important matters.
I believe that one of the subtle tactics that the enemy uses to diminish, and possibly cripple, our effectiveness is stealing our time. We can be so busy doing things that we never actually do anything! We are not “busy at work”, but instead we become “busybodies.” We appear to be engaged and fruitful in our work when we’ve really become purposeless, inefficient, and fruitless.
In the coming days, I want to share a few principles that I have learned (and am still learning) about guarding my time and using it in a way that honors God. Let’s start with honestly evaluating productivity. I’ve first got to know where I fall on the scale.
Today, I’ve decided that I wanted to dedicate an entire post to my wife, Lauren. I’ve written about tons of other things here, but she is, after the Lord, my greatest priority, treasure, and holder of my heart. God has blessed me with a beautiful, virtuous woman. When I found her, I found more than just a “good thing”, I found the most precious jewel on this earth.
You probably would never guess this, but I’m actually NOT perfect! I know, I know, I can’t believe it either. But really, I have many flaws, I stumble in many ways, and I can be a downright moody, irritating person at times. Somehow — I’m sure only by God’s grace and strength — she not only puts up with it, she continues to love me just the same. What a blessing to have a wife that honors God, me, and our family. She is an incredible, caring, loving mother to our son, and manages to keep our house running, while caring for all of us. I don’t know how she does it!!
