Lessons Learned in 2010: #5

#5 You'll always be tempted to pursue the non-essential at the expense of the essential.

While I've never been diagnosed as having an attention-disorder, I'm definitely someone who gets sidetracked easily. Well, it used to be a lot worse but thankfully it has improved throughout this past year. With each day seeming like I had a random and long list of things to do, I quickly noticed that I would start several things, but it seemed like it took forever to finish anything. Finally, I realized my problem... I was allowing one small task after another to keep me from finishing a more important task. I wasn't prioritizing!

I don't know if you can relate to this or not, but I finally just decided that I was tired of feeling like I never finished anything. Was I working hard? Yes. Was I making progress? Yeah, definitely, but I was constantly feeling like things weren't getting done. I knew I had to make some adjustments or once we started having weekly worship experiences, I'd never escape this feeling of never finishing anything.

I began to realize that I was at the most peace when I was giving my FULL attention to the most important things, so in order to properly prioritize my days I began to ask questions like...

-What are the major things that everything else needs to be scheduled around?
-What must get finished today?
-Looking ahead, what do I need to start on today (or very soon) so that it will be finished on time, with excellence, and not at the last minute?

As I began wrestling through questions like those above, I was able to look at my weekly schedule and prioritize my focus. For me, somethings, like family time and preparing for my Sunday message, took great priority over other things. Therefore, I have some time in my schedule that is non-negotiable. In other words, nothing interrupts these times. I've also started making a weekly to do list on Mondays. I love watching the list disappear from my dry erase board as the week progresses.

If you feel caught in an endless cycle of task after task, then hopefully what's worked for me may help you make some adjustments. Discover your priorities and essentials, and don't let the non-essentials distract you from where your focus needs to be.

Just remember, the devil has a way of keeping us from doing what's most important. He usually does this in a very casual way by bogging us down with things that have some importance but aren't most important. Therefore, above anything else, pray that God will help you focus and prioritize your day, and if you pray about this and stick to your priorities, then I know you will feel much better about your daily routine.