Closing Thoughts

I don’t uses this system because I am a time management and genus. On the contrary I rely on the GTD system because I am not. To be quite honest I am absent minded, unorganized, prone to an artistic temperament that relies upon inspiration to be motivated towards productivity, and was in the past an awful procrastinator. My only redeeming quality in all of this is that I was at least honest enough to see and admit that and then get help.

With all of the roles and responsibilities that come along with launching a church plant in the next two years, I knew that I needed some form of system or tools to help not only manage my time but help me to accomplish all that I have to get done. Hence the name, Getting Things Done. The call to love, protect and cherish my wife, love and disciple our children, train and study, plan and prepare for not only the pastoral responsibilities but the additional to-dos that come with a church plant are all far too important to be left to my own devices.

As I said before, I knew enough to know I couldn’t trust myself. Now I do have a system that I can trust and is tailorable to each new transition, role, and responsibility. That, I can honestly say, has made an incredible difference!

Redeeming the time

The final reason that I can point to in order to convey why I have grown to love GTD is that it is a system that enables me to make the most of the time I am given. Although we may not want to admit it, we only have so much time each day. By God’s grace we strive each day to faithfully steward our time to make the most of the life we have been given.

One of the primary ways in which GTD has aided the way I spend my time is that I now know what to do and when to do it. I am sure that I am not alone in that some days I feel like I have spent all my time doing something but have was not able to accomplish any of the items that I have set out to do.

Balancing multiple projects in multiple contexts is near impossible without the aid of a trusted system. In the past, what I inevitably ended up with was a series of lists and ideas filed in multiple locations. Approaching any one list at any given time was a very stressful exercise. More than serve as a structure for accomplishing any given task, these lists became a painful reminder of what I had wanted to do, but didn’t know how to do it all.

I should insert here that in the area of time management, I don’t and can’t do it all. There is much to be said here for prayerful discernment when it comes to what I invest my time into. On multiple occasions I have had to ask myself the question, “What really matters?” Right now I have a very short list with some very big items. Most common diversions such as television and listening to music while I drive have had to go by the wayside. (At least for the time being.) But that is only because I have within the system the ability to weigh each item and use the processing tools to set aside something for a future time knowing that it will still be there when I come back at a later date.

Built into the GTD system is a “weekly review” that allows me to take an objective look at all of my input and data, look at my schedule and calendar, as well as any current or future projects. This weekly discipline also provides an opportunity to see where much of my time is going and on what or whom is it being spent. It has become an exercise that I look forward to each Sunday evening.

Now, I will be the first to admit that just because I review and structure a plan around a trusted system that everything works out according to that plan. That is precisely what a weekly review is needed. Many weeks I come into my review time on Sunday feeling as if everything is a jumbled mess. However, the system is still in place and that structure serves as a stable platform to rebuild on for the upcoming week.

Living on Mission

One of the primary reasons that I have grown to love GTD is that it allows me organize my life in a manner that is both intentional and strategic. This in turn not only clears my mind but also allows me to focus my time and energy on the mission to which I have been called.

Experience has taught me that I have a tendency to be absent minded. I can’t begin to count the numerous times in the past that I offended someone or damaged a relationship solely because I didn’t have a system in place to help manage the large volume of “to-dos” that were coming in each day. That is a sad reality that I have to deal with.

Unfortunately, I learn had to learn the hard way that I needed something to effectively manage all of the “stuff” that was coming into my life everyday. My stuff could range from a simple request to pick up something for my wife or mail an important letter to replying to emails, scheduling meetings, questions about projects, deadlines, etc.

For me, there was nothing worse than running into an individual and as soon as you see their face you remember that you were supposed to call them to set up a lunch discussion last week. How do you explain to them that this meeting was important when they haven’t heard from you after you had promised to get back to give them a response in a timely manner? Unfortunately at that point, even the best of intentions fall short.

Mission must be intentional. Our natural bent is towards self and without honest and consistent refocusing of our desires and ambitions we will quickly turn inwards.

Each Sunday evening, I sit down to do my weekly review to look over all of my goals, projects, list of to dos, contacts, and potential project. Doing this allows me to be not only strategic with my time but also intentional in regards to living on mission. Each week I can do an honest evaluation of how exactly my time is spent and on what. I can see when I have begun to schedule all of my time around my own ambitions. I can clearly see when I have begun to neglect responsibilities with my family. I can look back and see when I last took an evening to talk with Rachel. I can also look ahead to our next evening and make conversation notes about important issues that are difficult to spend time on when we are trying to just keep our sanity each evening.

A while back I posted a short video of Ed Stetzer discussion the idea that mission is the opposite of self. Knowing that I have this natural tendency I have built into my weekly review and opportunity to honestly evaluate where my devotion lies. I have an opportunity each week to see whether or not my life is focused strategically upon the mission that God has called me to or if I have let that slip.

Sometimes it’s a harsh reality to face. No one likes to look back upon their week and realize how few of our precious moments have been spent on things with eternal value. However, looking at our shortcomings in the context of reviewing for the purpose of planning ahead affords us the opportunity to fall upon the cross of Christ as our source of forgiveness and lean upon the grace of God as we plan ahead and seek to give our very best for the sake of the gospel in kingdom building.