Month: January 2008

” … be sure that everything is done properly and in order.” [1 Cor.14:40. NLT]

One of the problems we all face today is that there is so much to do and so little time to do it in. This usually leads to more stress. So how to we become more relaxed, more energised, and more productive? One of the keys is to be organised.

Being organised helps your own sense of well-being and it also helps you develop a high level of trust with the people you work and interact with.

So how do you get control of your work-flow? I’ve just recently read David Allen’s book How to Get Things Done and found it extremely helpful. He has a heap of really practical tips for getting more organised and for being more productive in both life and work.

Click here for a copy of his ‘Mastering Workflow’ diagram, which is available for free, along with a number of other articles, on his web site.

A few of David Allen” tips include:

• Capture everything that needs to be done in a good system, then discipline yourself to make front-end decisions about all items so that you have ‘next actions’ for everything.
• Short-term memory is like computer RAM. Often we experience mental overload and mental stress because we have too much on our mind. Our mind keeps working on anything yet undecided.
• Is something on your mind? Take time to clarify what the ‘outcome’ you desire is, then determine your ‘next action’. This simple thinking process helps you feel better immediately, even before you have done anything about it! Often as little as ten seconds of thinking can help you clarify and decide, reducing stress.
• With every item that comes your way, ask ‘What is the next action’? Watch your energy and productivity lift.
• Relaxed control comes from having clear outcomes, a list of next actions, and reminders in a  trusted system that you review regularly.
• A lot of stress comes from internal commitments we have made to ourself, many of them unrealistic.
• Have you made too many agreements? If so, either say ‘no’, do it, or re-negotiate.
• If you clarify and organise a lot of the seemingly mundane ‘stuff’ in your world, you will clear your mind and release a new level of creativity. It’s a ‘bottom-up’ approach.
• Have a ‘dumpster day’. Sort through everything you have and throw out everything you really don’t need.
• Make your email inbox just that – an ‘in box. Don’t let it become a holding box. Make it your processing station. Process items as soon as possible. What do you do with each email? If you can’t DELETE it, either DO it (if it will take 2 minutes or less), DELEGATE it (to someone better suited to respond to it), or DEFER it (schedule a time later for you to do it).
• Organise tasks by ‘context’ – Calls to make, At desk, At home, On computer (online), On computer (offline), With (whoever), In (whatever meeting), etc. That way, when you’re in a specific environment, you can do tasks relevant to your context.
• For each task, consider the time available and the energy you have at that moment.
• Make an appointment with yourself every week for a Weekly Review. Ideally, you will need 1-2 hours. Early Friday afternoon is a good time, if possible. Use this time to keep your system up to date. Process new items, review the week, plan for the coming week, empty your head of various tasks and ideas, review all projects and next actions lists, etc.

Why not set aside some extended time as soon as possible to get your world a little more organised? What a difference it could make as you move into this New Year!

Next …

“Being cheerful keeps you healthy. It is slow death to be gloomy all the time.” [Proverbs 17:22. GNB]

“You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.” [Psalm 16:11. NLT]

As we love and serve God, he wants us to enjoy the journey.  He wants us to experience his joy – from the inside out. Joy is so important.

• The joy of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10).
• Joy is a sign of God’s presence (Psalm 16:11).
• Joy is the essence of life (Ecclesiastes 3:22; 5:19).
• Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galations 5:22).
• Joy is an attribute of the kingdom of God (Romans 14:17).
• Joy is an example to seekers (1 Kings 10).

To continually experience God’s joy, we need to be on guard against ‘joy robbers’ such as worry, frustration, stress, negativity, and fear. Ultimately, true joy is a choice and it is independent of circumstances (Habakkuk 3:17-19. Hebrews 12:1-2. Philippians 4:4. James 1:2-4).

So how can we laugh a little more and be more joyful this year?

1. Change your perspective. Truly believe that God is in control of your life and that he is working all things for our good (Romans 8:28). Have a strong belief in God’s providence. Life is not always fair, but God is always good.
2. Have an attitude of gratitude. Gratefulness always leads to joyfulness.
3. Focus on the good things God has done. As the old hymn says, count your blessings (not problems!), name them one by one and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
4. Be an optimist NOT a pessimist. See the positive not just the negative. Look on the bright side.
5. Get on the ‘solution side’ of your problems and challenges. Move beyond guilt and blame. Ask yourself what you can do to change things for the better.
6. Learn to laugh at yourself. Be serious about life but don’t take yourself too seriously. See the humorous side of things.
7. Maintain a sense of wonder. “The world will never lack for wonders as much as it will lack for wonder” [GK Chesterton]

How is your joy level right now? You got to .. laugh a little …

Next …

“But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” [2 Cor 11:2-3. NKJV]

How easily life becomes complex in our fast-paced and ever-expanding world. Complexity usually leads to stress and overload. Peace and an inner sense of well-being quickly disappear. Life becomes a bit like a rat race or a never-ending treadmill. Sometimes you just want to get off. We feel exhausted.

Some times we need to clear the clutter and SIMPLIFY our life. Maybe its time to do more … with less.

Here are a few things that you might want to do to SIMPLIFY your life this year:

1. Slow down a little.
2. Re-evaluate your priorities. There is always more to do than you have time for. This problem won’t go away. Re-negotiate your ‘agreements’ – with others and yourself. Maybe it’s time to do less.
3. Say a nice ‘no‘ a bit more often.
4. Spend more time with God. Talk to him. Read his Word.
5. Spend more time with people. Be more hospitable. Write some encouragement cards.
6. Clear the clutter – get rid of unnecessary ‘stuff’. Have a big clean up. Start with your garage and move through the whole house (including your wardrobe). Anything you haven’t used for six months, maybe you don’t really need it anyway. Give it away (to friends or your local Op shop) or throw it away, if its junk.
7. Practice contentment (Phil.4:11. 1 Tim.6:8). Life is not made up of the abundance of things we own (Luke 12:15). Resist advertising that seeks to make you dissatisfied with what you have now.
8. Consider ‘down-sizing’. Are you under a huge weight of debt? Maybe you’d be better off with ‘less’ and yet with greater joy and peace in your heart.
9. Don’t overwork. Keep the ‘Sabbath’ principle. Rest. Recreate. Relax. Laugh. Enjoy life.
10. Look after yourself. Sleep well. Take a walk. Eat healthy food.

“…  the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” [Micah 6:8. NLT]

Next …

It’s hard to believe that another year is history and a new one has just begun. These times of transition between seasons give us an opportunity to “reflect” on how our life is really going and to “resolve” to do some things differently.

Of course, we know that it will take more than reflection and some resolutions to bring about deep and lasting change in our lives. We need to go deeper within our hearts and look at our values – what really matters most.

What matters most to you?

We get our values from a lot of places including our parents, our peers, the books we read, the music we listen to and from society in general. The Apostle John, in 1 John 2:15-16, tells us that the three primary values of the world are pleasure (feeling good, being happy and having a good time), possessions (getting more and better “stuff”) and prestige (power, position and popularity).

It’s so important that we don’t buy into the world’s value system (Rom.12:1-12) because, as innocent as these things may seem, they don’t last and they have no eternal value (1 John 2:17). Just ask Solomon (read Ecclesiastes)!

What matters most is knowing and loving God (Mt.22:37-38), loving people (1 Cor.13:1-7) and investing our time, talents and resources for the benefit of others (Eph.2:10). These three things have lasting and eternal value. They really count in the long term.

The challenge for us is to ensure that there is congruence between what we say matters most and how we’re really living. Are our preferred values our actual values? The truth is that often we’re disappointed with ourselves. Most of us feel some pain because we realise that the way we are living does not fully match what we say really matters most to us. It’s like our lives are out of sync. There is a “gap” between what we really value and how we are living. Even Paul experienced this same frustration (Rom.7:15-25).

The good news is that the gospel is not just about eternal life in the hereafter but about another kind of life available to us right now. It’s about “transformation” – you and I changing and growing to become more like Jesus, someone who knew what mattered most and lived in total harmony with it every moment of every day (Gal.4:19. Rom.12:2. 2 Cor.3:18).

Bridging this gap between what matters most and the way we are living is going to take some “training” not just “trying” harder (see 1 Tim.4:7-8. 1 Cor.9:24-27. Luke 6:40). You can’t go out and run a marathon simply by trying really hard. Trying hard only accomplishes so much. No, you need to train, which means to arrange your life around certain practices or activities that will empower you to do what you cannot now do by will power alone. In the same way, spiritual transformation is not a matter of trying harder, but of training wisely by the use of appropriate spiritual disciplines (for a great read on this subject, see John Ortberg’s book, “The Life You’ve Always Wanted”).

Another important way to bridge this gap is to ensure that our time is spent on the right things. Set some goals and then schedule time in the New Year to do what matters most. May the coming year be a time where you become more intimate in your relationship with God, where you become more loving in every relationship you have and where you strategically invest your life for the benefit of others and the kingdom of God. Have a wonderful and a fruitful New Year!