I encourage you to develop a routine that works for you. For instance, you may set aside every Tuesday at 7:30pm to do laundry. Or every time you get a bill, simply put them all in one spot, and set aside Saturdays at 10:00am to pay bills. Decide when you will go to the bank, grocery shopping, etc. Having an effective routine brings together your “to do” and “when”. It is not enough to have a bunch of “to do’s” in your head. That makes for a cluttered life. It is having the “when” attached to the “to do” that puts you in control and eliminates a cluttered life.

One of the best books I’ve read on the subject of time management is Julie Morgenstern’s Time Management from the Inside Out. In it she shares practical advice on “assigning every task a home”, how to be proactive, how to create a time map and other strategies that fit you.

Consider the fact that time management is ultimately about life management. You have one life to fulfill what God has assigned you to do. Let’s make the most of it!

http://juliemorgenstern.com/

One of my favorite books on organization is Jennifer Ford Berry’s Organize Now!. If this is an area you’ve struggled with, I encourage you to pick one room in your house that needs to be “de-cluttered”. Write down everything that needs to be done so that it is organized and clutter-free. Then assign some time each day or week to work on it. Don’t move on to anything else until it is finished! As you do this, I believe your level of peace and energy will increase motivating you to clean out other areas as well.

www.jenniferfordberry.com

In order to achieve your goals, it is important you don’t repeat the same mistakes as last year. For example, if you struggled with your weight last year, make up your mind that you will defeat this thing and get in the best shape of your life.

Here are some guidelines to remember as you start thinking about your goals:

- Goals must be in writing. Goals that are not written down are just wishes.

- Goals must be measurable. There’s a big difference in saying, “I want to lose weight” and saying “I will lose 10 pounds by March 1.” Your goals must be measured by something; this is what increases your chances of achieving them.

- Goals must be realistic. If your goals are completely unrealistic, then you’re setting yourself up for defeat. Be practical.

- Goals must have a deadline. You will be more determined to achieve your goal when you have a deadline. Always assign a deadline to your goals. It’s energizing and motivating.

- Reward yourself when you reach certain milestones toward your goal. If your goal is to lose 50 pounds, reward your progress and treat yourself (with something other than food) every 10 pounds you lose. This will keep you motivated and help keep your momentum going.

- Put yourself in situations that will be conducive to reaching your goals. Surround yourself with positive people who will help you achieve your goals. If your goal is to save money, don’t go out with friends who are lavish spenders and out of control with their money.

• hopeless to hopeful
• discouraged to encouraged
• brokenhearted to being made whole
• depressed to joyful
• wounded to healed
• passive to aggressive
• existing to visionary

. . . all has to do with what is coming out of your mouth.

Proverbs 18:21 says that what you say actually releases the power of life or death: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit” (NKJV; see also Jas. 3:6; 1 Pet. 3:10). While the battle for your life is being fought in your mind, your mouth is the most powerful weapon you have against the enemy! It is the weapon in combating your worst thoughts.

Let me explain. You defeat wrong thoughts with words, not with other thoughts. You can’t try hard to think about something else until your bad thoughts go away. It’s just a matter of time before your mind will go right back to where it wanted to be.

Imagine if I asked you to subtract 3,968 from 8,539. As you’re subtracting in your head, what if I interrupted you and asked you to give me directions to your house. You would have to stop working the math problem in order to hear what your mouth was saying. Your words—giving me directions to your house—would take over the thoughts about the math problem. Try it.

I learned this years ago, but it took awhile to realize how powerful it is in mental warfare. Your mouth will cause you to go from constantly being under attack to being on the attack. When Satan comes at you with negative, oppressing thoughts, you will know how to shut him up. It’s right under your nose. You just have to use it.

I heard a story years ago about a guy named Mike who played football for the Miami Dolphins. He was approached by the coach of Auburn University to help recruit new players for the team. The coach said to Mike, “You know, there’s that kind of guy that you hit ’em and knock ’em down and they stay down.” Mike asked, “We don’t want that kind of guy, do we, Coach?” “Of course not,” replied the coach. “But there’s that other kind of guy that you hit ’em and knock ’em down and they get back up. No matter how many times you hit ’em and knock ’em down, they always get back up!”

Mike started getting excited and asked, “So we’re going to go looking for that kind of player, right, Coach?”

“No, Mike. Find me the guy who’s knocking everybody down!” It’s a great story and reminds me of what happens when you learn to pick up the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God coming out of your mouth (see Eph. 6:17), and shut Satan’s torment up! You become the one who is on the offense. You become the one charging after Satan rather than constantly fighting to stay on your feet on the defensive side. It’s all in what you do with
your mouth!

“A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; he rages against all wise judgment” (Prov. 18:1, NKJV). Like me, you might have a tendency to isolate yourself from people when you’re going through a tough time. Keep in mind that Satan likes to keep you isolated. He knows where you’re weak, and he knows how to play on your emotions. If you keep godly counsel around you, they can keep you strong. They can help you stay focused on reaching your new goals and keep you walking toward your new life.

I love this story I read about a guy named Monty Roberts, the author of “The Man Who Listens to Horses”.
When Monty was in high school, his teacher gave the class an assignment to write about what they wanted to do when they grew up. Monty wrote that he wanted to own his own 200-acre ranch and raise Thoroughbred racehorses. His teacher gave him an F and said that the grade reflected that he deemed his dream “unrealistic”. Nobody living in a camper on the back of a pickup truck would ever be able to accumulate enough money to buy a ranch, purchase breeding stock, and pay the necessary salaries for ranch hands. When he offered Monty the chance of rewriting his paper for a higher grade, Monty told him, “You keep the F; I’m keeping my dream!”

Today Monty owns a 154-acre ranch called “Flag Is Up Farms” in California and raises Thoroughbred racehorses as well as training hundreds of horse trainers!
Don’t let anyone talk you out of your dreams. Stay focused on what you know in your heart God is telling you to do!

I love what I heard TD Jakes say, “Don’t repeat this year what you did last year!”

If you struggled in an area last year, make up your mind that you will defeat this thing and get in the best shape of your life. Personally, I felt very strong about the Lord telling me to get in the best SHAPE of my life this year…and not just physically. I want to encourage you to do the same. That includes: your relationship with God, your finances, your fitness/health, your family/household, your friendships and your future dreams/goals.

First, you have to define what “being in shape” means to you. It can have totally different meanings to different people. Is your relationship with God all out of shape? Did you find yourself getting too busy in 2010 to read His Word or spend time in prayer? Then, you need to get your relationship with God in shape. What does that mean to you?

What about your house? Is it all out of shape, clutter has piled up, drawers are junky, closets are stuffed and you can’t park your car in the garage anymore?

What about your personal finances? If being in your best shape financially means getting out of debt, then write that down. Always, always, always be specific when setting your goals. Vague goals produce vague results. How much debt do you have? Have you added it all up? How much do you owe in credit cards? Have you called to find out the pay off for your car(s)? Do you have any school loans? Add up every bit of debt you have and write it down.

I do not believe that just setting big, lofty goals on January 1st is enough to help you see change in your life. I am absolutely convinced that the secret to your success can be found in your daily routine. It’s what you do every morning when you wake up that determines whether or not you reach your goals.

It’s been reported that nearly 40% of people who break their resolutions attribute it to having too many other things to do. In other words, they are not laser-focused on really reaching their goals. They are easily distracted in their daily schedule.

If getting out of debt is one of your biggest goals and you do not want to repeat this year what you went through last year, then I highly encourage you to keep that vision in front of you. Out of sight IS out of mind. Keep that ‘written vision’ in front of your eyes at all times! Put it in your daytimer, on your iPad, on your computer screen, on your refrigerator, some place where you will be forced to look at it….at least once daily!

Then, do something to educate yourself in that area. Learn from the best. Plan a day (very soon) to go the bookstore and get a book on finances. Read articles online. I highly recommend “The Automatic Millionaire” or “The Total Money Makeover”. Invest time in reading it. Plan it in your daily schedule. You could read 10 minutes during your lunch break. Or 30 minutes before bed. Statistics prove the average American watches 4 hours of television a day. If you just cut out 30 minutes a day to read, study, educate yourself in the area of your most important goals, you will have invested 15 hours this month into reaching your goal. Every day matters.

Make this the year that you get in the best SHAPE of your life! Do what you need to do to make each day count. You have more time than you realize each day to do something that will move you toward your goals. Most importantly, don’t repeat this year what you did last year. Get ahead this year by getting focused on your most important goals and keep them in front of you.

Happy goal-setting!

The ministry during this France tour has been just amazing.

We’ve distributed almost 3,000 copies of my French book, “You’re Valuable to God” in meetings in Nice and Paris as well as on the streets all over!

Youth groups from three churches in Nice and one church in Antibes (a gorgeous old city on the Riviera) come together for a meeting. Every one there responded to a desire to embrace a new beginning in God. One young lady drove all the way from Toulon, France because she saw my post on Facebook. She came WITH MY BOOK in her hands and was crying. She said “every page was written for me” and she was thrilled that I would come all the way to France to minister to her. The young people received the Word so openly. We gave them all copies of my French book and I believe it was a life-changing time for them.

At my service in Nice at Eglise La Bonne Nouvelle with pastor Marie Helene Moulin, there was a gentleman from Poland vacationing with his family at our meeting. He gave his heart to the Lord that beautiful, sunny morning in Nice, France listening to a redheaded preacher from Texas! What a divine appointment.

ICING Hillsong Paris was out of this world. It was packed to capacity and so exciting! Halfway through my message, I said, “Est-ce que vous voudriez manger quelque chose? Petits gateaux pour tout le monde!” Music started playing and our hostess team (French, American, and Canadian) came walking down the aisle passing out beautiful Parisian cupcakes. The girls went nuts! As odd as it seems, cupcakes are fairly new to Paris so one lady even said to me, “I have always wanted to try a cupcake!” At the end of my message, I invited the young girls up (13-21) and had them face the audience. I said “How many of you do not want these beautiful girls to go through what you’ve been through?” And tears began to flow….Just looking in their eyes, something hit. I got teary-eyed. My interpreter lost it. Many of the ladies were so choked up looking at the young girls. We gave them all the resources we have in French (at this time) and they were all clapping and cheering! They were so grateful. What an amazing night. Women took the train from London to come, one girl flew in from Nottingham, England and another from Amsterdam! It was a humbling and exciting event.

At Paris Centre Chretien so many people came to the front at the end of my message crying out to God. The presence of the Lord was so strong that night. It was a special time of new beginnings for everyone there.

Thank you for your prayers and support as we strive to do more to reach out to France and all over the world with God’s love!