Don't Waste Your Time!

I don’t like feeling unproductive. I know that God loves me for who I am and not what I do for Him, so that isn’t what drives my desire for productivity. I just like knowng that I’m making the most of the time given to me and being a wise steward with that time.

So now that you know that I enjoy efficiency, you can imagine how I feel when a student that I’m scheduled to meet with cancels on me at the last minute. Or, when I have an appointment with a student and then a 30-minute gap before my next appointment. Early on in my staff career, it would drive me a little crazy because it didn't seem like I was “working” and I felt like I was wasting time. I’ve talked with and trained enough new staff and interns over the years to know that I’m not alone in this feeling.

So, here are ten suggestions for things you can do to help you make the most out of lag times during your day rather than just staring at your phone, looking at worthless Facebook status updates or Instagram pictures of what that student you met with two weeks ago had for dinner last night, or finding a campus newspaper to do that day’s Suduko puzzle.

* Prayer Walk on campus - pray for your heart, your movement, your staff team, disciples, non-Christians that God has brought into your life etc. Often prayer walking stirs my heart for the lost and motivates me!

* Postcard to Ministry Partners - jot a note of thanksgiving to one or two ministry partners a week, or share a fun story from that week on campus. That personal touch goes a long way! Just keep some addressed postcards in your campus bag and you'll be ready when you have an extra 10 minutes!

* Text some students/supporters/someone on your staff team and share how you appreciate them. Be specific in your affirmation- everyone likes to hear something good about themselves from time to time, and when it’s something specific it will really stand out. (Example to student: "I noticed how you initiated with the two new girls at Bible study on Monday--thanks for talking with them and getting their numbers. I'm sure they really felt welcomed! You are a great at making others feel cared for!")

* Pop over to your Target Area ( dorm, Greek house etc) and ask God for a divine appointment that He can orchestrate. Maybe ask if you can do Perspective cards or Soularium with someone in the lobby or common area.

* Read a book chapter. Have a book for development in your bag or read it on your favorite tablet (Kindle / Nook / iPad). You'd be surprised how much reading you can get in with 20-30 minutes here and 10-15 minutes there.

* Work on new staff development. Yes, I said it. I am a HUGE fan of new staff development and there are some great resources in that training that I often use with students I disciple.

* Pick up a fun drink from Sonic and pop over to visit a disciple or bring them with you to Sonic. Some of the best discipleship times are just the hangout/ not planned ones where you ask God to use you and live normal life with them etc. (Guys, translate to something y'all would do -- maybe go throw the football or ask him to run an errand with you, or maybe y’all do the Sonic drink thing also!)

* Work on a Staff Responsibility of yours (Example: I write our campus prayer letters to our campus ministry partners or update our campus website. When I have lag time in the middle of the day on campus, I can often get some of those things done and this won’t take up a whole afternoon later).

* Start drafting your Monthly Prayer Letter. Y es, I said monthly ! Your ministry partners want to hear from you, and your ministry to them needs to be a priority in your schedule.

* Update your Discipleship Notebook/Plan a Future Discipleship Appointment. ( What is a discipleship notebook? I can't keep track of details from disciples' lives or what material I've already done with them, so I make notes to myself after each discipleship time, detailing what we covered or what resource I want to send them or go over next time.)

I hope this brief list helps you to feel like you are not just wasting time waiting on your next scheduled thing for the day. Most of the time, we just need to have a few things in our campus bag, enabling us to be productive and wise stewards of the time God has given us.