Well we have entered into another year and I am quite sure that many of us have resolved to do better than we did last year. The New Year will obviously bring in new challenges. I think of the school kids starting a new grade or form. New subjects, new teachers, new everything. I believe that with all these changes taking place we must never lose sight of our purpose in life as Christians.This year I would like to begin by challenging us all to manage our time around the will and plan of God for our lives. Ephesians 5:15 - 16 says ‘‘See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise but understand what the will of the Lord is.’’Make sure that you take time to evaluate your time management. The enemy can fool us into making bad use of our time, making us less effective for the kingdom of God.That’s why it is important to put a value to our activities and tasks. To do this I suggest you begin by the following

• Set out your goals for the week, month or year
• Value each goal defining those which are most important
• Prioritize your goals based on their importance (Value)
• Schedule your week. Month or year devoting more time to tasks and activities which are most important and beneficial(valuable)

This will help you identify where you should be spending most of your time and it will also help you to see what activities will benefit you the most. So remember to be wise as you set your goals for the year put first those things which will enrich you and equip you to be a blessing for the Kingdom of God.

Till next time
God Bless

Today we can take a look at a few things that interfere with good time management.

Quite often because we are busy, tired or just plain lazy we put off doing things we should be doing in favour of those activities which are less stressful and less important. The result of this is that we never get anything done and we never make any good progress in life. As a student often I would put off studying because there was always something less ‘’challenging’’ to do. Very often my report card would read ‘’He only strives for the minimum, he needs to put more effort in his studies’’

The dictionary defines procrastination as a type of avoidance behavior which is characterized by deferment of actions or tasks to a later time. In other words we put off till tomorrow what we can do today. The bible often tells us of how those who procrastinate or put off run a very big risk of losing out on what God has reserved for his children.  In Matthew 8:21 we see how a man wanted to follow Jesus but wanted to put it off because he had other things to do. He had to go and bury his father In Luke 14: 15-24 Jesus tells a parable of a great man who prepared a feast and invited some friends. How ever many deferred because they had something else to do. One said he had bought a piece of ground; another had bought five oxen etc. The conclusion is that they missed out be cause they procrastinated.

I have narrowed the causes of procrastination to 3

• The activity is unpleasant or not enjoyable
• The activity is overwhelming (Like studying)
• LAZINESS

Here are a few hints on how one may overcome procrastination.

1. Know when you are procrastinating. For example when you:
• start a high-priority task, and almost immediately going off to make a cup of tea, check your sms ;
• Leaving an item on your To Do list for a long time or till the last minute, even though you know it's important; (studying for an exam the night before)
• Regularly saying "Yes" to unimportant tasks that others ask you to do, and filling your time with these instead of getting on with the important tasks already on your list
2. Remind your self of the unpleasant consequences of NOT doing something
3. Have some one check up on you
4. Break down huge tasks in to smaller activities
5. Start slow and ease your way into more involving activities
6. Reward yourself for accomplishing certain important activities

Well that’s all I have for now.

God bless