Leadership is sacred, holy work before God. Whether it be leadership of our own lives, our churches, our famlies or our finances, it is a challenge to mature through the walls and challenges that confront us. It is easier to remain in anxiety, ruminate needlessly, or become reactive when we are stuck. This happened to me recently at New Life around a complex administrative issue before us. As a result I returned to the following simple,but difficult, emotionally healthy skill called, “Bust through the Wall to Maturity.” After working the simple steps below, over many hours and days, God’s pathway became clear. And I found myself flourishing before Him once again. Give it a try: 1. Identify one specific situation about which you have anxiety or feel stuck. 2. To what conclusions might you be jumping? Pass what you think to be true through the “distorted thinking” lens. Ask yourself: Am I doing… — All or Nothing Thinking (e.g. “You can’t trust anyone) —Taking Things Personally or Blaming (e.g. It’s their fault I’m in this mess). — Things will never change (e.g. I’ll never feel the same again.). 3. What is your goal? What do you want? 4. What are the steps you need to take to reach that goal (Be as specific as possible)? 5. Put them in sequential order. 6. Think through how long it will take to do these steps. What will you need to stop doing/starting doing to ensure you have the time/bandwidth to actually do these step. 7. Do the steps – even when your temptation is to rush or be reactive. Remaining focused on the goal and planning does not cure anxiety but it sure does calm it! To do this process, before the Lord, is holy, powerful work. What do you think? What variation has helped you?
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