Daily Must-Dos

Following up on yesterday’s post, Personal Growth Plan, I’ve been thinking about the things I think I need to be doing (virtually) every day (while similar to a post I wrote a year and a half ago, Routines, this post focuses more on the *everyday* routines).

I came up with a list of five daily must-dos …

• TWG: Time With God (prayer and Scripture, primarily)
• TWF: Time With Family (quality and quantity time)
• Reading & Listening (leadership, ministry, and/or spiritual formation)
• Sabbath Time (I’ve heard that the root word for Sabbath means, “to catch your breath”)
• Exercise (walking and weights)

I certainly haven’t mastered these five daily must-dos. And I’m not even sure it’s possible to do all five equally well everyday. Some days it’s hard enough just to do most of ’em! But it’s a *reminder* of the important things that I need to be doing, that if done as consistently as possible, will make a big difference over the long haul.

TWG keeps me connected and growing in my relationship with God. TWF strengthens family relationships (including the ongoing bonding with Ethan and Sarah) and maintains a healthy living environment. Reading (as well as listening to leaders/communicators via podcasts or DVDs) stirs my heart and mind and also keeps me learning and growing. Daily Sabbath time (perhaps my biggest challenge on this list) will provide some healthier balance and will make the other daily practices more effective. And exercise releases stress and gives me energy (I include “weights” here even though it’s been a missing component since bringing Ethan home two years ago; hoping to change that soon, though); exercise creates a healthier environment where learning and growing can happen more effectively (in other words, it fills my tank; see Tank-Filling Activities).

What are your daily must-dos?