Category: Personal Development

A great recent post from Michael Hyatt, worth repeating ... As 2013 has rolled over to 2014, there has been the usual emphasis on New Year’s resolutions. Network television, radio shows, podcasts, and blogs have all had features on the topic. But the truth is, New Year’s resolutions don’t work. Get this: 25 percent of … Continue reading 5 Reasons to Commit Your Goals in Writing (by Michael Hyatt)

We've just spent the last series of BLOG posts doing some Planning for the New Year exercises. Over this time we have looked at six steps for leading your own life. Each of these six simple steps can also be applied to your church, your ministry, your organisation or business, your family, as well as … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Conclusion)

Our final step in Planning for thre New Year is ... STEP 6 - Evaluate. Effective life leadership requires that we take time to evaluate our lives and our progress. Every Christian needs to periodically take a spiritual “stocktake”. We need to bring ourselves to account, to see how we are really doing. It is … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.13)

Happy New Year! Let's move on to the next step in Planning for the New Year ... STEP 5 - Do God's Will Paul’s instructions to the believers at Ephesus were action-orientated (Eph.5-6). He gave them things he wanted them to do. They were to take action, which meant to start doing things they weren’t … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.12)

Let's now look at our next step ... STEP 4 - Organise Weekly  To make the most of your time and to manage your life well means that you need to consider what you are doing with your time. That’s why a weekly planning appointment is so helpful. Use a calendar and schedule specific time … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.11)

Step 1 of Planning for the New Year was Understand Your Mission. Step 2 was Identify Your Roles.  Let's now move on to Step 3. STEP 3 - Establish Goals. As Paul identified each role, he gave some specific instructions or goals for the believers at the church of Ephesus to work on. Wives were to lovingly submit to … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.10)

STEP 1 in Planning for the New Year is to Understand Your Mission. We have considered a number of things to help us get a better handle on our mission: a mission statement, core values, personal vision, prophetic directives, our unique SHAPE, and a SWOT analysis. These all work together to show us different aspects or … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.9)

Another simple tool to help you as you continue to think through your Mission is a SWOT analysis. SWOT stands for: Strengths - what are you good at? When do you feel strong? Weaknesses - what do you find difficult? What drains you of energy? Opportunities - what are the greatest opportunities facing you right now? Threats - what are … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.8)

Another helpful thing to consider when reflecting on your Mission is your personal SHAPE. SHAPE is a concept developed by Rick Warren and it includes consideration of five things: Spiritual Gifts - what spiritual gifts has God given to you? Heart - what are your passions, interests, and motivations? Abilities - what are you good at? Personality - what type … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.7)

Another dimension of Mission is considering any Prophetic Directives God may have given you. This includes any specific prophetic words God has given to you directly or from others, as well as any specific Bible verses God has quickened for you. Listening to the Spirit's directives and then following them creates a sense of spiritual momentum in your life. Spiritual … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.6)

Another aspect of Mission is Vision. Vision answers the question, “Where?” Where are you going in the next period of time (3-5 years)? What is on the horizon and which way are you heading? Leaders are called by God to communicate a preferred picture of the future that motivates people with passion to give their lives to make it … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.5)

Another dimension of Mission is Values. Values answer the question, “Who?” Who are you? What is important to you? What are you building on and what do you hope to outlast you? Jesus had specific values that he was building His kingdom on and he made them very clear to everyone. “You have heard it said that … but … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.4)

Effective life planning involves SIX STEPS aimed at helping you to lead and manage your life well. Today we begin with Step 1. STEP 1 - Understand Your Mission The Apostle Paul tells us to “understand what the Lord’s will is” (Eph.5:17). What is God's will? What is God’s purpose for your life? How has … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.3)

To begin our life planning process, we’ll make use of a reflection exercise. Reflection is all about pulling aside from the busyness of our life in order to contemplate and think about a specific thing. It is related to the concept of meditation, a common biblical practice which simply means to chew something over and … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.2)

Many people spend more time planning for their holiday than they do planning their life. That’s a sobering thought. Over the next two weeks I’d like to lead you through a series of daily reflection exercises aimed at helping you to make next year your best year yet. After all, leading your own life is … Continue reading Planning for the New Year (Pt.1)