Not Too Late for First Things

The fervency of the new year coming is now on the wane, and I'm betting a lot of diets have already been broken :) However, it's not too late for you to make some commitments this year to what should be priorities in your life. Putting first things first will make your life much more awesome, I guarantee it. As long as your list starts like this, you're getting off the mark right:

1. Relationship with Jesus Christ
2. Family

So if you want to get things going right this year, let's do it!

Here's what I want you to do first: make a list of everything you are thankful for that happened in 2012. Everything. If you had a bad year, find the good and write it down. If your list is real short, then go back further than 2012 and write it out.  You need to be thankful and grateful for what the Lord has done in your life and thank Him for it.  The Bible says that every good and perfect gift comes from the Father.  Amen.

Now after you have done that, start your list of first things.  These are things that are going to take precedence in your life in 2013.  You know what's important; now it's time to write it out and hold yourself accountable.  (Sidenote:  get somebody else you trust to hold you accountable as well.)

You are writing this list out so that when things come up throughout this year, you can refer back to your list and see how they measure up.  You are also writing out your list because statistic after statistic proves that writing down goals results in much, much higher achievement rates.  Get to writing!!

As long as your list starts with the 2 things above, you will be starting well.  Take some time and make sure the rest of your list makes sense, too.  Where does work go?  Is it more important than time with friends?  How much does money matter to you?  How do you balance work, people, hobbies, etc.?  How much time do you spend on Facebook, and does it amount to anything?  Is fitness a priority?  How about learning new things?  Answering questions like these will help you get your list right.

So write out the good things God has done; give Him thanks; pray about how you spend your time, asking God to lead you where you can do better; examine your heart; write out your first things list for 2013; hold yourself accountable; get somebody you trust to hold you accountable to your list (and critique it if needbe).  You can make 2013 great.  Start right now!

Eight One Twelve

Eight is a number that represents new things. This eighth month, August, has always been one of my favorites because it shows signs of newness--school begins, cycles start over, signs of life everywhere.

I'm also very much about first things. You can help set the course and the tone for the future with the way you do the first things. With this being August 1st, you can help set the tone for the rest of your year (and for the new things that are in your heart) by making sure you put time and effort into the right things today. In plain English: don't worry as much about the time-consuming tasks and little things today. Focus on big picture, your future, and realigning your priorities to how they should be. Yours won't look exactly like mine, but here is where you should start:

1. Relationship with God
   
2. Family
3. Everything else

This is August 1^st, 2012 and this day will never happen again. Make the most of it by taking time to look at the big things. Asking tough questions and facing issues that you’ve avoided needs to happen. Your excuse of busyness needs to get buried.

Lord, steady my mind and heart and lead me to the things that You have for me. Let Your voice echo in my mind and heart so that I can hear You above all the noise...I want to hear Your voice and nothing else. Thanks for loving me. I love You. In Jesus Christ’s Name, Amen.

Start It Off Right

Happy New Year!! 2012 is gonna be amazing! We’re gonna see the Lord do some awesome things—and we get to be a part of it!

I’m a big believer in starting things off right; setting things in motion correctly from the start; setting a precedent. The first things you do are the things that resound and set the stage for the rest of the show. That’s why getting the most important things first is so critical.

So to start off your 2012, I encourage you to make the most of this first week. Write down the things that are of most value in your life. Then, write down all the things that you want to do/grow in/develop/mature in/work towards/see happen this year. If you’re feeling frisky, go ahead and rank them :)

Now that you have a list, it’s time to do something with it! During this first week of the year, do something to work towards each one of your goals. I’ll use myself as an example…my big priorities are my relationship with God, my family and friends, leading worship/stuff at church, music, and business. Some of the things I want to accomplish this year flow from that list of priorities:

mature in my faith
see more unity in the Body of Christ
start leading worship in more places
write more music
strengthen the relationships in my life that matter to me
get better musically

So in starting the year off right, it makes sense for me to do things this first week to work towards each of these goals. It looks something like this:

mature in my faith --> make time to pray and fast and hear what the Lord is saying to me

see more unity in the Body of Christ --> pray for unity, interact across boundaries, set up joint events, LOVE

start leading worship in more places --> contact people now for things going on all year long

write more music --> set aside time each week to write...even if inspiration isn’t necessarily hitting me

strengthen the relationships in my life that matter to me --> spend time, set up lunches, make calls

get better musically --> practice pushing myself vocally every week, find voice instructor

Set things in motion now that are going to affect the rest of your year. If you sow good things, then the harvest shall be good! Pray and see where the Lord leads you and press into the things He lays on your heart. He knows you better than you do because He made you. Maybe you should ask Him what He thinks about you ;)

And if you don’t know Jesus as your personal Savior yet, give your life to Him. There is nothing better. Jesus is the only Son of God; He died for your sins. You've not done anything so bad that He won't forgive you. If you believe on His death on a cross for your sins, His burial, and His resurrection from the grave; confess your sins and turn from them; and acknowledge Him as lord of your life, then you can have everlasting life in Heaven with the only true God. Start 2012 with the biggest and best decision you’ll ever make.

God bless you all and may many blessings flow your way this year through Our Lord Jesus Christ! Peace, love, and blessings through the magnificent Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Amen!

adam

Set the Tone

Hey guys! Happy New Year! I hope 2011 has already gotten off to a great start for you!

I’m betting a lot of you are resting up and hanging out today, watching some college football, or some movies. I just wanna encourage you to throw in a few things of substance today as well. Let today set the tone for the rest of your year --> whatever you are passionate about and plan on doing this year, go ahead and get your feet wet. I’ll use myself as an example.

My top priorities never change: 1. God, 2. my family. Thus, I have already had some Jesus time today, and already called up my family to talk to them for a bit. After those two things, my plate gets really jumbled up, and I juggle priorities depending on what I feel the Spirit is leading me to do, what I feel is most important for the particular season, and the urgency of certain tasks. Since today is January 1st, I am going to spend a little time on all the biggest things in my life. After I finish this blog, I’ve got a whole list of things I’m gonna spend a little time on b/c I’m wanting to set the year off right in all of the areas I’m passionate about… I’ll spend some time at the church, I’ll write some music, I’ll hang with friends, I’ll do some worship, I’ll hit the gym, and I’ll do some business things. I’m gonna do it all!

I hope you take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to set the tone for an entire year. Use the start of 2011 to reflect on the goodness of what God has already done, take a look at your life from a fresh perspective, reanalyze where your heart and your passions lie, reprioritize how you spend your time, reenergize as you let the love and joy and peace and power of the Holy Spirit flow all over you, and get yourself ready for big things to happen!

May the God of Heaven bless you all as you seek after Him and live out your passions according to His purposes and for His glory. In Jesus Christ of Nazareth’s holy lovely awesome and righteous mighty name, Amen!!!