The Overloaded Christian Life

It’s probably more than a little cliché to point out that we are a busy people who live in a busy time. And while we tend to think there is something unique to the modern context that pushes us especially hard toward overwork, as I have read the books of previous eras I have come to see that the issue transcends the trappings of the world as it is today. There may be some unique components to today’s context, but …

The Joy of Forgetting What You Need To Remember

If I have my timing right, the last conference I spoke at was the 2020 Bethlehem Conference for Pastors. It was early February and we were just beginning to hear unfamiliar words like “COVID” and “coronavirus.” (A search through my inbox shows that the first mention of it was from an old Adam Ford newsletter in which he speculated that the outbreak in China was far worse than anyone was letting on.) I didn’t think much about the virus as …

Become a Patron

Three New Tools That Make a Huge Difference

Many years ago I discovered a set of tools and procedures that allowed me to be most productive. Since then, I have pretty much stuck with those same tools and with that same system, save for a few minor tweaks here and there. (See Do More Better) In the past year, though, I have discovered a few new tools that have swiftly made a big difference to my life. These have not replaced any of my existing tools, but instead …

The Only Way To Do The Work Of A Lifetime

The great part of every life is made up of duty. While we certainly experience many delights and enjoy many distractions, there is more of duty to life than anything else. The God who creates and calls us also assigns to us many obligations, many responsibilities, many tasks and assignments. The great majority of what we do in a day and in a lifetime is the fulfillment of duty. Even the best of jobs and the most satisfying of vocations …

There Is Only Ever Today

My family moved a number of times when I was a child. The first home I remember was near the center of Toronto, a little house that has long since been torn down and replaced by a modern monster. From there we moved to one of the city’s up-and-coming eastern suburbs where we had an older home on a larger property, then to one of its established western suburbs where we had a very normal home on a very normal …

How Can We Glorify God with Our Time?

The way you spend your time says more about your spiritual condition than you may think. Ephesians 5:15-16 says, “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” In this clip, I try to expose two ways in which we fail to glorify God with our time and the deeper heart issues that lie beneath these decisions. Transcript Time has a way of getting away …

How Can We Stay Productive Over the Long-Haul?

During a recent trip to China , I was invited to spend some time with some friends who live there. They asked me questions that ranged far and wide, but here we talk about productivity and how we can remain productive over the long-haul. Transcript How do you continue to come up with new ideas for content and produce it so regularly? Well partly, it’s what I do, so I just have to come up with content. So, the longer …

Ask Me Anything Zambia: Writing and Productivity

While in Zambia during a recent EPIC trip, I held an Ask Me Anything event at Central Africa Baptist College. Here are a couple of the questions and answers: one concerns how to become a writer people will read, and the other is about how to maintain productivity in work. The answer is slightly ironic given my current situation (I didn’t mention not getting nerve damage is essential for productivity) but anyway, here are my answers.  

Procrastination Is a Failure to Love

I am, for the most part, an organized person. I actually wrote a whole book on productivity in which I laid out the system I used (and still use) to remain organized and, hopefully, effective in what I do. I have begun my days in roughly the same way for many years now, and have found that quick, daily “coram deo” a valuable way of ensuring I’m using my life in the most effective way. In many ways, this entire …

Three Productivity Tips That Actually Work – Three-Minute Thursdays #6

We’re nearing the end of the year, which means we’re already beginning to turn our attention to the next year, aren’t we? Now for most of us, that means we’re evaluating the year that was, and starting to determine, how can we do better in the year ahead? In this edition of 3 Minute Thursdays, I want to give you three quick productivity tips that I think will actually make a difference.  You can watch it in Facebook or YouTube …