Redeeming Productivity

Theologians speak of the sufficiency of Scripture—the doctrine which states that all that believers need to live the Christian life is contained in the Word of God. But when it comes to personal productivity, is the Bible really the only thing we need in order to know how best to steward our work, time, and energy to God’s glory? Links The Truth Matters Conference — Full video and audio from the conference will be posted here in the coming days.The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession.I reference Episode 3 several times, so check that one out if you haven’t listened to it yet.Follow @redeemingprod on Twitter.

In this special 10th episode of the podcast, I tell the story of how I became an accidental minimalist and ended up living in an RV for four years with my wife and dog. I share some of the lessons I learned about “simple living,” minimalism, and the sinfulness of the human heart throughout this journey. Links What Living Full Time in an RV Taught Me About Minimalism and ContentmentThis Week on the Blog: How to Stay Productive, Even When You’re SickDrop us a line at mailbag@redeemingproductivity.comFollow Redeeming Productivity on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.

In this episode, we talk about the perfect morning devotions plan. Many Christians wonder how many chapters they should read, should they be studying deeply or reading broadly, or exactly how long they should be spending in the Bible each morning. Is 10 minutes enough, or should I be dedicating several hours each morning? We answer all those questions and more, on this episode of The Redeeming Productivity Show. Links Blog Post – Why Reading Your Bible Every Day is the Best Way to Be ProductiveBlog Post – Biblical Meditation, How to Get StartedAt the time of this podcast release, Phil Johnson’s sermon on Psalm 1 was not yet posted online. You can find it here when it becomes available. It will be the one which was preached on September 29th, 2019.An excellent book on praying as you read the Bible: Donald Whitney – Praying the BibleEvery year, Ligonier updates this post with links to a variety of Bible reading plans.

In this episode, Reagan is joined by Eric Weathers, who serves as Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships with The Master’s Academy International. Eric and Reagan discuss the topic of Christians working in the secular marketplace and Eric’s doctoral work on the writings of John C. Maxwell. Links The Master’s Academy InternationalEric Weather’s chapter on John C. Maxwell from his dissertation

In this episode, we examine the benefits of living a life of integrity. We also explore why the reasons which are usually offered for being people of integrity fall short of the Christian standard. Then, we open up the Bible and examine what the Scriptures say about integrity. God calls us not just to be people of integrity, but to be people of ruthless integrity. Links Redeeming Productivity’s InstagramA great article on the subject of Christian integrity: Integrity and Identity by Jeremiah JohnsonThis week on the blog – Paper vs. Digital Productivity Tools

Today I am joined by Drew Dyck to discuss his new book, Your Future Self Will Thank You: Secrets to Self-Control from the Bible and Brain Science. Drew is an acquisitions editor at Moody Publishers, a contributing editor at Christianity Today’s CTPastors.com, and the author of several other books as well. We discuss how self-control fits into the Christian life and how believers can cultivate more of it in their own lives. Links Get Drew’s book, Your Future Self Will Thank YouDrew Dyck’s WebsiteMy review of Your Future Self Will Thank You for The Master’s Seminary Blog.This week on the Blog: How to Organize Your Writing with Markdown

In this episode, we look at the phrase “redeem the time” from Ephesians 5:16 and how having an appreciation for the preciousness of our time changes how we live. From the writings of Jonathan Edwards, we examine four reasons why time is the most valuable resource on earth and what that means for how we spend it. Show Notes Welcome Welcome to the 5th episode… If you have questions, suggestions for topics or just want to say hello. Send me an email at mailbag@redeemingproductivity.com. Be sure to check out the companion blog post 1:21 - Episode Introduction What makes things like gold, diamonds, oil, or other natural resources valuable? The most valuable resources are useful, rare, and nonrenewable. Given these principles for value, the most valuable resource on earth is time. With the help of Jonathan Edwards, we will take a look at Ephesians 5:16 and that phrase, “redeem the time.” 4:20 - Context for Ephesians 5:16 In Ephesians 5:15, the apostle Paul begins a section on “walking in wisdom” so we need to understand the instruction to "redeem the time" in that context. This is one of the ways in which believers are to walk in wisdom. We walk in wisdom by, as it says in the ESV, “making the best use of the time.” 5:26 - Explaining the Phrase That phrase “making the best use of” in the ESV is actually just one word. Some translations render is simply “redeeming.” And that is a good translation because it carries the idea of buying, especially buying back or buying out. Paul uses the same term in Galatians 3:13 when he writes, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us….” And he uses it similarly to our passage in reference to time in Colossians 4:5, “Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.” Making the most of the time is the opposite of delaying, it is taking full advantage of every opportunity. 10:48 - Edwards on The Preciousness of Time American Puritan Jonathan Edwards addresses this important issue in his 1734 sermon “on the preciousness of time and the importance of redeeming it”. In it, he gives four reasons why time is precious. 13:05 - First, time is precious because eternity depends on it. 14:20 - Second, time is precious because it is very short. 17:02 - Third, time is precious because we do not know how much we have. 22:40 - Fourth, time is precious because once it’s gone it’s gone. 24:40 - Application Links 4 Reasons Time is Precious - Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards - The Preciousness of Time and the Importance of Redeeming It - PDF

Ever dreamed of retiring early? How about retiring at 25 or 30? In this episode, we talk about a movement that is inspiring young people to be very productive now, so they can be far less productive later. The financial independence, retire early movement, or FIRE for short, has continued to gain traction among millennials, including some believers. But how should Christians think about this? Is financial independence a worthy pursuit? And most importantly, what does the Bible have to say about it? Links 7 Things You Can Learn From The ‘FIRE’ Early Retirement Movement – Huffington Post Financial Independence subreddit More on Vicki Robin, the Godmother of FIRE More on our time living in an RV – What Living in an RV Taught Me About Minimalism & Contentment Article I wrote for The Master’s Seminary Blog on the deceitfulness of riches – 3 Lies Money Tells This Week on the Redeeming Productivity Blog – 10 Spiritual Benefits of Journaling

In this episode, we talk about why the foundation for a Christian’s approach to getting more done is distinctly different from the world’s. And why that means we must take greater care in how we approach the secular productivity advice we read and listen to. 1:50 – Introducing why we need a distinctly Christian approach to productivity Why this is different than “Christianizing” secular productivityThere is a unique theology to a Christian’s understanding of productivityIt is dangerous for believers to simply take whatever the world teaches on productivity.These books have helpful advice and guidance, but must be approached with discernment. 5:30 – Every philosophy of productivity has a theology Most productivity books and podcasts eventually leave the practical and begin to tread on religious themes—why we are here, the nature of man, the goal of life, etc. 11:08 – Examples of secular productivity books presenting religious themes Quotes from The War of Art, The Compound Effect, The Power of Habit, and more. 20:30 – What makes these things dangerous, and how it relates to the sufficiency of Scripture If we don’t listen carefully, we inadvertently imbibe unbiblical theologies and build our life on them.Explanation of the sufficiency of Scripture and how that assures us of a better foundation for our productivity as Christians. 25:20 – Examples of Scripture speaking directly to the issue of productivity The Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 19:12-28), The mandate to work heartily unto the Lord (Colossians 3:23)To not waste time (Ephesians 5:15–17) To live with self-control (Titus 2:12)The entire book of Proverbs and its emphasis on wisdom.All of these point to not just the possibility, but to the necessity, of a truly Christian productivity. 26:55 – Christian productivity is only for Christians and an explanation of what it means to be a Christian Christian productivity doesn’t work for everyone, only for those who have put their faith in Jesus ChristChange in the Christian life is the work of God, but that change is accomplished through the means of diligent effortR.C. Sproul quote, “… we think that because we’re…Christian…we do not have to be concerned about productivity. On the contrary, our calling as Christians is the highest calling there is, and the idea of being productive is not the invention of capitalism, it is the mandate of Christ.” (R.C. Sproul, John, St. Andrew’s Expositional Commentary, 286) Links This episode was based in part upon my article Why We Need a Distinctly Christian Productivity, which was itself based on material I used for my course on Stewardship & ProductivityOn the Mormon roots of 7 Habits for Highly Effective People – A Closer Look at Stephen Covey and His 7 HabitsBooks mentioned on today’s episode: The War of Art, The Compound Effect, The Power of Habit, Atomic Habits, Deep Work.

In this episode, we talk about how what it looks like to email like a Christian and how personal efficiency is not necessarily at odds with having a good witness in the workplace. 2:41 – Discuss article on “Emailing Like a Boss” How the author says her life was changed by responding to emails with shorter answers because it made her more responsive, and let fewer emails slip through the cracks.The author was inspired by seeing emails from top CEOs and politicians when they became public after high-profile email hacks.Mark Cuban is known for this practice.Like to article from BuzzFeed (warning: Language). 7:30 – Discussing the merits of this terse approach to email Allows you to get more emails answered.But there is a trade-off in personal warmth.Is this practice a good idea for Christians in the workplace? 8:30 – Emailing like a Christian—not a CEO The Bible has a lot to say about how believers communicate:Quoted Matt. 15:11; 12:34.Regardless of the medium through which Christians communicate, our communication should be markedly Christian.Explained Colossians 4:5–6.The way in which you email is part of your Christian witness in the workplace. 16:41 – Personal efficiency in email is not at odds with loving people in our communication Often, the most caring thing you can do with email is get back to someone right away, even if that means a shorter, more terse response.Long-winded emails do not equal better emails. 20:12 – The principles behind emailing like a Christian Be ResponsiveBe ClearBe BriefBe Kind 24:05 – Some examples of emailing like a Christian 29:26 – Conclusion Personal efficiency is not at odds with painting a good Christian witness. Often it can assist in that. So when it comes to emailing like a Christian the goal is simple: I want to have a good witness for Christ, by being a person who communicates well through email.That means I need to respond in a reasonable time frame. And it means I need to make sure my emails, like all my speech, are always gracious, seasoned with salt. Links BuzzFeedNew article referenced: I Tried Emailing Like A CEO And Quite Frankly, It Made My Life BetterOn the blog this week: More information about this podcastAnother blog post on email – How to Handle Ministry Email OverloadReagan’s Stewardship & Productivity Course at The Institute for Church Leadership