Eight questions…

One of the few areas I have a lot of discipline in is planning. I’ve tried every kind of organization system… Franklin Planner, DayTimer, DayRunner, DayMinder, Planner Pads… you get the idea. I’ve finally settled in the last two years on my own system. It’s a single sheet of cardstock that I print each week. No more piles of sticky notes or multiple to-do lists… just this sheet. It has worked for me.

On this sheet of paper, I have eight questions I try to regularly ask myself. They are:

1. What do I need to do this week to bring more clarity in YFC?

2. What do I need to do this week to better control my attitude/emotions?

3. What do I need to do this week to be a more disciplined follower of Jesus?

4. What do I need to do this week to improve my skills/personal growth?

5. What do I need to do this week to invest more in others?

6. What do I need to do this week to demonstrate stronger character?

7. What do I need to do this week to love Debbie sacrificially?

8. What do I need to do this week to lead as a husband and father?

Obviously I have A LOT of work to in each of these areas to be the man God wants me to be, but I am intentionally trying to take a step further along the path to be more like Jesus in each of these areas. It’s not always pretty, and often they are either baby steps or the old “three steps forward, two steps backwards”, but I am certainly trying to listen to the Spirit’s whispers and promptings.

This past month, here are just a few of the “ah-ha” statements I was impressed with…

· God speaks in the silence of the heart. Listening is the beginning of prayer. – Mother Teresa

· You are what you pay attention to. No attention, no life. Everything comes to life when you pay attention to it. – Leonard Sweet

· The One we follow never stands still… never leaves us where we are. That’s why, as His leaders, we move and grown and motivate and envision others to see a world that can be better tomorrow than the one we see today, inviting others to join us. – Jim Mellado

· Obeying the Spirit instead of your own self-centered whims will lead you to places you’ve never been, challenge you in ways you have never been challenged, and invite leaders to sacrifices you never dreamed you could make. This is the power and the promise of full-throttle faith, of living a life fueled solely by God. – Bill Hybels, The Power of a Whisper

What questions do you need to regularly ask yourself?