5 Measurements Of A Day
I want every day to count.
What about you?
One thing we all have in common as humans is a limited amount of time. No matter how busy you feel you are, or how much excess time you think like you have (is there anyone alive who ACTUALLY feels like they have too much time??) we all receive a total of 24 hours in our day to do what we need to do. The person with multiple kids and a demanding job, and the young adult who is just beginning their career both receive the same amount of time.
So, how do we make sure our days count?
And more importantly, how do we make sure that we actually live out the things that are a priority in life?
There are times that because of the limit of time, we make the excuse that we actually don’t have time to do what we say we value. But think this thought for a moment: if we don’t have time to do what we say is a value and a priority — how are we actually stewarding our time?
A number of months ago I came across a story of Benjamin Franklin. As a young man, he developed a list of thirteen virtues that he determined were values to him that he wanted to see lived out and integrated into his life on a daily basis. Each day he would look at these thirteen virtues and give himself a grade on how he did.
Take note of a few things that Ben Franklin kept in motion:
He kept his priorities and values in front of himself daily.
He was holding himself personally accountable. (We can all fake it with others, but we can’t fake it with ourself.)
He was measuring his activity against the things he wanted to come through in his life.
So after reading about this, I decided to make my own list. For the past few months I take out this list (I have it on my wall in my home office, and I keep it on my Evernote so it is always with me digitally) and I measure my day. As I considered my life as a follower of Jesus, a husband and dad, a pastor and leader, I boiled it down to 5 key areas that I wanted to measure each day, and give myself a grade. Somedays I actually felt like I got an “A” in certain areas. Other days…not so much.
5 MEASUREMENTS OF A DAY
Each day I ask myself these questions, and I give myself a grade.
Did I meet with Jesus?
As a follower of Jesus, this has to be a priority. Not out of legalism or some dead religious pressure or guilt. Jesus wants to be with me — and I really do want to be with Him. For me this includes time reading scripture, talking and listening to Him through prayer, and even reflection through silence or journaling.
Did I serve, bless, and encourage my family?
All of us are wired to want to be served. But I want a healthy marriage. I want to have a strong influence and loving relationships with each of my children. This requires me to focus my time on serving, blessing and encouraging my family.
Did I give my best at work?
All of us has a level of responsibility on our lives that we feel. For me, I don’t just have a job — I have a calling. Each day, with the time and energy that I have, am I truly giving my best?
Did I develop myself?
One of my commitments in life is to be a life long learner. I never want to stop growing and learning. Self development is critical if I really value this — and the truth is I either grow daily or I will die gradually.
Did I steward my physical health?
This one is multifaceted for me. I happen to be Type 1 Diabetic (I don’t talk about this very often) — so stewarding my health is really important. This means eating right (most of the time), checking my blood glucose levels often, and staying physically active. This is why my daily routine starts with a 6 AM gym time at my CrossFit Gym (Shout out to my crew at University Place CrossFit).
These five areas are all aligned with values that I have. And just like everyone reading this — life happens. What that means is, sometimes things get busy and it becomes easy to live out hours and days of our lives that are disconnected from what we say actually matters most.
“sometimes things get busy and it becomes easy to live out hours and days of our lives that are disconnected from what we say actually matters most.”
Measuring your day helps you to keep your values in front of you.
I hope that this list might inspire you to create your own.
Why?
Because each day is a gift. Live it with intentionality. Live into your values and priorities.
I’d love to hear from you in the comments below:
what would you measure in your days to live by your values?
