Needles, syringes, gloves, scissors, tape, a stethoscope...those are some of my daily tools at work, and without them, I couldn’t do my job. I need them to assess my patients, care for people safely, and give the medications that they need.
We need tools at a job and, in the same way, we need tools for our daily life; to keep us on task, to keep us focused and to help us remember daily God’s purpose for our life.
“Do More Better: A Practical Guide To Productivity” by Tim Challies, is one of those tools. I’ll admit, when I first read the title, I thought it sounded like a book written for the business-world, and not likely applicable for someone like me - a regular mom. Honestly, the word productivity both scared and excited me. But, I love lists and organizing, so I was intrigued.
Then, the kindle book was on sale this week, and my Goodreads friends had given it high reviews. So, I bought it (you can never have too many books, right?). After reading the table of contents, I was hooked and I dove right in.
The main theme of the “Do More Better” is to help believers realize how their roles and responsibilities in life are given to us by God, to glorify Him and to serve others. This book is for those who have too much on their plate, and don’t know where to cut out; it’s for those who want to keep their life organized and need some practical tips to get started; and it is also for those who want to infuse their daily life with purpose!
Challies defines productivity as “effectively stewarding my gifts, talents, time, energy and enthusiasm for the good of others and the glory of God.” He encourages believers to see God’s design for our life, in bringing glory to Him with our abilities, and talents, and that we use them to serve those around us. He warns against the pitfalls of laziness and busyness, which can easily begin to pervade our daily grind, if we are not paying attention.
He brings focus to our mission, by guiding us to list the roles and responsibilities in our life, then challenging us to develop a mission statement for each of those areas. This list will form the foundation of organizing our daily life.
Then, he provides 3 tools to help us arrange our daily life into one system, using our roles as the structure; to navigate our tasks, schedule events and collect information. By using the 3 tools together, into a daily review, we are better equipped to steward the tasks and events in our life, for the glory of God.
I really loved the tools he recommends, and the way he challenges us to organize them around the roles that God has given us in our life. It helped me to see a deeper purpose in the “ordinary” tasks, because the tasks become saturated with meaning when I look at it with God’s purposes in mind. The laundry becomes part of my mission to love and care for my family, and taking out the garbage becomes part of my mission to be a helper for my husband.
With technology at our fingertips, social media constantly in our faces, we need to take a step back at some point and wonder, how are we supposed to get life done in the middle of all these distractions? This book gives practical advice to bring organization and cohesiveness into our lives in order for us to become more specific in how we spend our time, to bring our mindset into doing good for others, and bring God glory.
I really enjoyed it. I gave it 5 stars - which, for me, means that I would read it again...and buy it. If you’re interested, it’s still on sale on Amazon!