Dear steward,
I love summer.
The weather gets nicer, and the pace of life starts to slow down a little. And for me, at least, relaxation often turns to reflection.
In summer, I start asking myself questions like how am I doing and where am I heading in life (in my faith, my work, my family, etc.)? And what can I do to ensure I’m not just floating through life but actively stewarding this life for my Lord?
Summer allows you to step off the treadmill just long enough to gain some perspective.
It was on a summer vacation 3 years ago that I sat on the porch of an Airbnb and wrote out a 5-year plan that covered every aspect of my life, from my walk with the Lord, my hopes for how we are raising our kids, all the way down to specifics of our financial future. And every summer since, I’ve done an annual review in which I look over those long-term goals and decide what changes I need to make to refine those goals and stay on track.
It’s also in the summer that I tend to spend some extra time on self-development.
With fewer pressures, I finally have the time to work through courses I’ve purchased and read books that will help hone specific areas of my spiritual or professional life. For example, this summer, I’m taking a course on writing email newsletters and blogging so I can improve in this area. And I have a plan to make a dent in some of the works of Jonathan Edwards I’ve been meaning to read.
I would commend the practice to you as well.
Redeem these summer months for some reflection and long-term thinking. Maybe sit down and dream a little, write out a 5- or 10-year plan. And ask the hard questions like, “is what I’m currently doing going to actually get me there?” And at the very least, commit to going through a book or a course that will help you grow in some area of life.
And if you’re wanting to grow in personal productivity and time management, you might consider joining us in Redeeming Productivity Academy for our Summer cohort.
Registration for Q3 will be open next week only, June 20th–24th. And we’re only adding 50 spots this time.
When you join RPA as an annual member, you not only get access to our complete course catalog that helps you with things like
- God-honoring goal-setting
- managing an effective to-do list
- combatting overcommitment
- and setting up a productive morning routine
You also join a community of like-minded Christians seeking to glorify God with how they steward their lives.
This last quarter in the community, we focused on goal-setting and accountability, and we’ve seen tons of members finally knock out some seriously massive goals—some of which they’ve had for years but just needed the push to get done. Goals like writing a book, launching a business, completing a professional credential, and memorizing an extended section of Scripture. It’s been amazing to see the transformations!
And we’re doing the same thing in Q3. We’ll guide you through a simple process for creating a killer plan for your goal, and we’ll keep you honest with weekly accountability and encouragement to stay on track.
This, of course, is all in addition to the courses, live workshops, book club, office hours with me, the Life Stewardship OS Notion template, and the bazillion other things now included in an RPA membership.
We’ve had over 300 productivity-minded believers come through RPA in the last two years. You can visit this page to learn more about their experience and read more about everything you get when you join.
As I said, we’re only opening up 50 spots this quarter, so join the waitlist on that page, and you’ll be notified first so you can grab your spot before it fills up.
We’d love to have you. But either way, I hope this summer you’ll take some time to rest, relax, and redeem the time.
Alright, now let’s get into this week’s Roundup.
In Today’s Issue:
- Time Keeps on Slippin’
- Pointing to Christ at Work
- Life Planning Workshop
- Saying No & Setting Boundaries
- Quote: Giving the Gift of Time
The best links I found this week
Time Keeps on Slippin’ Into the Future (5 mins)
Kenny Sexton / The Bonhoeffer Project
Some great thoughts on the importance of redeeming the time.
What I most appreciated about this author’s perspective was the emphasis on margin. Redeeming the time isn’t just about maximizing every second it’s about being available for opportunities.
It also has some great quotes on time from the early church fathers.
“Let us be vigilant and wise in our use of time, for the days are fleeting and the opportunities for growth and righteousness are limited. May we discern God’s will and live according to His purposes, redeeming every moment for His glory.” – St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD)
How Can I Point to Christ When Work Gets Stressful? (4 mins)
Miranda Carls / The Gospel Coalition
Lots of practical advice in here from Miranda Carls. I especially appreciated the reminder that if your workplace claims to value diversity or “bringing your whole self to work,” then that’s an invitation to be open about your Christian identity.
“If your coworkers know you’re a Christian, your actions will speak for themselves, and most will assume you’re acting in accordance with your belief system. It’s often as simple as that: wear the label of Christian and then act like a Christian in your workplace. It speaks volumes when the office Christian is the most honest, kind, patient, and thoughtful employee in the bunch.”
Life Planning Workshop (June 22nd)
I’m hosting a free workshop next Thursday, June 22nd, at 12 PM EDT on how to create a Christian vision statement for your life.
In this 90-minute webinar, I’ll walk you through a process for writing a “Well Done” statement that can help you in setting God-honoring goals and making big decisions.
Mark your calendar and visit this YouTube event and click “notify me” to be alerted when the event is going to begin.
Saying No & Setting Boundaries
One of our Redeeming Productivity Academy members shared this in the community earlier this week, and I thought it so insightful.
The creator of this image, Liz Fosslien, has a lot more of these types of illustrations on her website. I’ve been enjoying browsing through them this week.
Something I Like
My good friend Bodie Quirk is launching a Bible teaching ministry to teach lay people the fundamentals of Bible study.
The You Can Learn the Bible Academy is an online ministry dedicated to helping you learn the fundamentals of Bible Study in less time and without having to go to Seminary.
Using The Bible Study Success Path, we walk you step-by-step through 5 essential areas of Bible literacy: Skills, Story, Context, Jesus, and Identity using a combination of live (Zoom-style) in-person training, on-demand courses, 1:1 and group coaching, and engaging community discussions.
It is a private, supportive online community that seeks to equip and inspire you to understand and delight in the Bible more deeply.
Academy Founding Membership is open now through June 26, 2023.
Learn more at YouCanLearntheBible.com
Quote of the Week
The greatest gift you can give someone is your time because when you give your time, you are giving a portion of your life that you will never get back.
John Maxwell
