March 2013 – Page 3 – 300 words a day

occupational lent.

That phrase came to mind recently while reading a book Hope needs for a class. I got to it first and began to read. The writer talked about a passage from Augustine’s book on rhetoric, De doctrina Christiana. I pulled it off the shelf above my desk to look at the passage. In the slowly […]

by Jon Swanson

a couple questions about attention and time

Attention management I was talking about time and attention management to people preparing to pastor. After describing some tools, I asked them to talk about the difference between time management and attention management. We agreed that both are valuable, but when we improve our attention management, we will have a clearer standard for time management. […]

by Jon Swanson

teaching leadership.

(first posted September 22, 2009) If you are training people in leadership, how do you help people understand what you are teaching? Consider Jesus’ approach: 1. You could start with a point of passion. Look for what is making them angry. Find an injustice that has them completely furious. Especially if it is an injustice that […]

by Jon Swanson

old promises

When we wake up Tuesday morning, Nancy and I will say, “Wow. It doesn’t seem like 30 years since we made those promises.” Jon, will you have Nancy as your wife, to live together in the covenant of faith, hope, and love according to the intention of God for your lives together in Jesus Christ? Will you listen to […]

by Jon Swanson

A Sabbath in a year.

We were talking about Sabbath on Saturday night in our Sabbath group. I don’t have time or space or energy to capture the whole conversation. But somewhere in the middle of the conversation, I said that many people don’t like the idea of Sabbath because they think it feels legalistic. They start trying to figure […]