You may have heard the old axiom “Plan your week, then work your plan.” The wisdom in that saying is right on point. The most productive people I know, both in ministry and otherwise, have developed a habit of planning tomorrow before they close the door on today.

In other words, before they begin any new morning, they already have a good idea of what the entire day is going to look like. They have taken time to outline the details, and then they stick to the plan they’ve outlined.

I encourage you to do the same–and so does Solomon: “Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run; hurry and scurry puts you further behind” (Prov. 21:5, THE MESSAGE).

The most practical way to implement this concept is to take a few minutes every evening to prepare for the following day. Say it’s Monday at 5:45 p.m. Before you leave the office, spend 15 or 20 minutes sketching out what you are going to be doing on Tuesday:

• Write your to-do list.
• Make sure all of your meetings are entered into your calendar.
• Pull out the folders and documents you’ll need and put them on your desk.
• Locate the tools and resources you know you’ll need so that they’ll be handy.

When you walk out of the office that night, walk out knowing you have done your best to be sure that Tuesday is completely planned. By doing so, you’ll ensure that Tuesday runs as smoothly as possible, allowing you to be both efficient and effective with your time.

Average pastors don’t do this. Having not given any thought to Tuesday on Monday night, they get to the office on Tuesday morning and wonder what they should tackle first. They hurry and scurry through the day, without following any real plan for their time, and end up more behind at the end of the day than they had been at the beginning. Can you relate? Going renegade means breaking the cycle and taking responsibility for the time God has given you to do His work.

– Nelson Searcy and Jennifer Dykes Henson

The above excerpt is from pgs. 90-91 of The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life and Ministry.

Drawing from Nelson Searcy’s decades of ministry experience, The Renegade Pastor is a relevant, step-by-step resource for church leaders who are ready to step up in surrender to the pursuit of God’s best for his or her life and work.

P.S. – Click here to grab your copy from Amazon today!

Your partner in ministry,

Nelson

© Nelson Searcy. All Rights Reserved.

About Nelson Searcy

Nelson Searcy is an experienced church growth strategist, pastor, church planter and coach, consulting with churches around the world. As founder of Church Leader Insights and the Renegade Pastors Network, he has personally trained more than 3,500 church leaders in over 45 denominations through live events, seminars and monthly coaching. Nelson is also the Founding and Lead Pastor of The Journey Church, with locations across New York City and in Boca Raton, FL. Nelson and his church routinely appear on lists such as “The 50 Most Influential Churches” and “The 25 Most Innovative Leaders.” He is the author of over 100 church growth resources and 18+ books, including The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life, Ministry and The Difference Maker: Using Your Everyday Life for Eternal Impact, and At the Cross with the People Who Were There. He and his wife, Kelley, have one son, Alexander.