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Mark Eastman

The Benefits of Combining Your Calendar and To Do List

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The Strength of These Two Things Together Can Increase Your Productivity

As business owners, entrepreneurs, hardworking employees of companies, and active people, we find ourselves busier than ever during this time of the year. As we approach the end of one year and begin preparing for next, there just isn’t enough time to get everything done. Add to this the Holiday season and everything that goes with this…it can get overwhelming.

As busy people we struggle trying to get everything done. The thing we need to remember is…

We don’t have to get EVERYTHING done.

Instead, we should prioritize our actions and focus on the first next thing. What is the most important thing currently on the list? At the same time we need to remember there is a limited amount of time available.

Recently I had a day that made the importance of a calendar and the limits of time very clear.

I typically have my calendar packed tight. Some of you have seen my calendar and know what I’m talking about. On this particular day, I had no meetings or events scheduled. I was lazy about putting things on the calendar.

As always, I had a long list of things to do. More than I could ever get done. The problem with not having things scheduled on the calendar is…the importance of time available is lost. At the end of that day, I was disappointed in how little I got done. I should have put things on the calendar.

This is why it’s important to use a list and a calendar together.

A calendar is a visual view of the time available. As you put things on the calendar, the day, the week(s) and the future begin to fill up. It’s a gauge for what you can get done. It isn’t an exact science; you already know that some things are going to take longer than you plan for.

Seeing this limited amount of time packed to the point of running over amps up the sense of urgency. This increased urgency improves productivity. It’s a black and white way to see the limited time available, a list of things to do doesn’t show you this.

A calendar is a great way to measure the time you have to do the things on the list.

The purpose of lists is to keep track of things that need to be done. We all have lists of things to do, whether it’s in our head, on paper or electronic. I use OneNote for my lists because of its simplicity, connect-ability, flexibility and options available.

The thing that I like about my OneNote list is that it improves my ability to keep track of the things on the list and allows me to easily move things around and add or remove as things change. And we all know that things never change. 😊

A list is a great way for prioritizing things that need done first and keeping track of the rest.

A calendar is a time focused tool. The “to do list” is just what it says…a list of things to do. These are two different tools, with different purposes and abilities that work well together.

Most of us business owners, entrepreneurs, hardworking employees of companies, and active people want to be more productive. Using these two tools to support each other is a good place to start.

It’s a Lot Easier to Say Something Than It Is to Do It

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Actions Speak Louder Than Words

We’ve all heard this phrase, “Actions speak louder than words.” It’s a pretty common saying.

It is believed to have originated during the English Civil War. John Pym, an English parliamentarian, coined the expression in 1628. He said, “A word spoken in season is like an Apple of Gold set in Pictures of Silver, and actions are more precious than words.”

It’s easy to say things but harder to do them. Words can just roll right off our tongues before we take time to think about what we’re saying. This is especially true when we want to do everything for everybody. I call this a servant’s heart. I know because I have one.

When we do the things that we say we will, we are showing where our hearts really are.

The thing to remember is that we have control over both what we say and what we do.

We can change what we say and do. We don’t have to accept the status quo. We can write our own story.

In China, if they don’t like the way a movie ends…they change it.

In the final scene of the movie Fight Club. the star stands with his girlfriend, as they watch explosives blow up a cluster of skyscrapers — all part of what was presented to the audience as a plan to destroy consumerism by erasing bank and debt records.

That amount of anarchy — and the government’s inability to stop it — doesn’t appear to have passed muster with China’s notoriously strict censorship rules though.

In the version available in China, the entire scene featuring the explosions has been cut out. Instead, it has been replaced with a caption explaining to audiences that the authorities arrived just in time to save the day.

“Through a clue received by the police, they rapidly figured out the whole plan and arrested all criminals, successfully preventing the bomb from exploding,” the caption reads. “After the trial, Tyler was sent to [a] lunatic asylum receiving psychological treatment. He was discharged from the hospital in 2012.”

We have the power to change how our story ends.

We can decide if our actions or words will speak the loudest. As long as we are still alive, we can write our story.

In Luke 23:33-43, we see an example of rewriting the end of a story. As Jesus hung on the cross there were two criminals hanging there with Him. One of them insulted Him by saying, “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”

The other criminal responded harshly to the first, “Don’t you fear God, seeing that you’ve also been sentenced to die? We are rightly condemned, for we are receiving the appropriate sentence for what we did. But this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

Jesus replied, “I assure you that today you will be with me in paradise.”

Both criminals wrote their own stories by the choices they made in that instance.

Jesus’ actions spoke loudly. The criminal’s choices spoke loudly. Our choices speak loudly.

Our actions are more important than what we say. We shouldn’t stop at our words. We can bring our words to life through our actions. We can write the ending to our story.

Choose your words and actions wisely and write the ending to the story that God wants for you.

Goal Achieving is a Better Plan Than Goal Setting

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Too Often Once the Goals Are Planned…We Forget the Achieving Part

This is like having plans to build a building and once you get the blueprint drawn…you stop. You have a picture you can hang on the wall, but the building never gets built.

Having a plan before you start is good, but it’s not enough. If you don’t dig some dirt and drive some nails, nothing is accomplished.

Accomplishing anything requires action and action requires decisions.

This book gives us Seven Decisions shared with David Ponder while on his travels bout how we should live our lives. I review and contemplate these decisions daily.

We’re nearing the end of another year. The closer we get, the more we beat ourselves up because of the things we didn’t get done. It’s easy to get caught up in the things that we didn’t accomplish and overlook the things that we did. We all have visions of what our dream life will look like. This can be frustrating and depressing when things don’t turn out like we planned.

We need to remember that we can’t change the past, only the future. The key is to not give up.

Giving up is like dying while you’re still alive. Don’t give up!

Last week I wrote about how we can use urgency to accomplish more. Urgent things become a higher priority. This moves them up higher on the list. As an example of how this works, let me tell you a story that happened just this morning.

As Katie (my awesome assistant) and I were working on some website things, I realized that I couldn’t log in to the Solution Building site because I had waited too long in setting up my two-factor authentication. This is something that Stacey (my amazing IT person) told me to do a month ago.

This meant that I wasn’t going to be able to publish this week’s solution until I got this taken care of.

As it is with busy people…I kept putting it off to do other things. The level of urgency ramped up though when I couldn’t get into the website. I had to decide what I was going to do. At that point, it became the highest priority.

We all deal with these kinds of choices. The key to accomplishing more is to decide early on what is important and what isn’t. No matter how clear we are on our life and business plans, things are going to happen. Some are within our control, and some aren’t.

The more answers we have to big life question, the easier the smaller questions are to deal with.

Ultimately achieving goals comes down to decisions and deciding is up to us.

As I think about life and decisions, once again, I’m brought back to Andy Andrew’s book, The Traveler’s Gift. I know, I refer to this book a lot. As I was thinking about goals and decisions, I was reminded about the profound impact this book had on my life as I recovered from my concussion.

  • The Responsible Decision

I accept responsibility for my past. I control my thoughts. I control my emotions. I am responsible for my success.

“THE BUCK STOPS HERE.”

“If decisions are choices…and our thinking dictates our decisions – then we are where we are because of our thinking.”

President Harry S. Truman

  • The Guided Decision

I will be a servant to others. I will listen to the council of wise men. I will choose my friends with care.

“I WILL SEEK WISDOM.”

“God moves mountains to create the opportunity of His choosing. It is up to you to be ready to move yourself.”

King Solomon

  • The Active Decision

I am courageous. I am a leader. I seize this moment. I choose now.

“I AM A PERSON OF ACTION.”

“My future is immediate. I will grasp it with both hands and carry it with running feet. When I am faced with the choice of doing nothing or doing something, I will always choose to act!”

Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain

  • The Certain Decision

I will not wait. I am passionate about my vision for the future. My course has been charted. My destiny is assured.

“I HAVE A DECIDED HEART.”

“Truth is truth. If a thousand people believe something foolish, it is still foolish! Truth is never dependent upon consensus of opinion. I have found that is better to be alone and acting upon the truth in my heart than to follow a gaggle of silly geese doomed to mediocrity.”

Christopher Columbus

  • The Joyful Decision

I will greet each day with laughter. I will smile at every person I meet. I am the possessor of a grateful spirit.

“TODAY I WILL CHOOSE TO BE HAPPY.”

“Our very lives are fashioned by our choices. First we make choices. Then our choices make us.”

Anne Frank

  • The Compassionate Decision

I will forgive even those who do not ask for forgiveness. I will forgive those who criticize me unjustly. I will forgive myself.

“I WILL GREET THIS DAY WITH A FORGIVING SPIRIT.”

“Forgiveness is a secret that is hidden in plain sight. It costs nothing and is worth millions. It is available to everyone and used by few. If you harness the power of forgiveness, you will be sought after and regarded highly. And not coincidentally, you will also be forgiven by others!”

Abraham Lincoln

  • The Persistent Decision

I will continue despite exhaustion. I focus on results. I am a person of great faith.

“I WILL PERSIT WITHOUT EXCEPTION.”

“Great leaders – great achievers – are rarely realistic by other people’s standards. Somehow, these successful people, often considered strange, pick their way through life ignoring or not hearing negative expectations and emotions. Consequently, they accomplish one great thing after another, never having heard that something cannot be done. God may have been waiting centuries for someone ignorant enough of the impossible to do that very thing!”

Archangel Gabriel

Achieving our goals comes down to decisions.

Starting by deciding what our priorities are.

Deciding to be responsible. Deciding to be wise. Deciding to take action. Deciding to believe in ourselves. Deciding to be happy. Deciding to forgive. Deciding to persist.

Worrying About Things Can Really Suck the Energy Out of You

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The More You Know Before You Need to Know it, the Better Equipped You’ll Be

Disaster movies are popular and generally do well at the box office. Who doesn’t like a story where everything is crashing down and the underdog hero steps up and saves the world, even though they didn’t think they could.

This reminds me of a quote I heard recently from Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger. He is the pilot who made the heroic landing of the of US Airway’s Flight 1549 in the Hudson River after being struck by a flock of birds shortly after take-off from New York.

Sully said, “We all have heard about ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary situations. They act courageously or responsibly, and their efforts are described as if they opted to act that way on the spur of the moment… I believe many people in those situations actually have made decisions years before.”

Learning and implementing little things into our lives daily is the best way to be prepared for whatever life throws our way.

We all know how life can throw us curve balls when we least expect them.

Jesus tells us this very thing in Luke 21:19-15. He tells us to expect wars and rebellions. Nations fighting, earthquakes, wide-scale food shortages and epidemics. He prepares us as followers of His, telling us we will be sought out and persecuted.

The more we read His word and learn from the Scriptures, the better prepared we’ll be.

Yemen is a country where Christianity is oppressed and discouraged. There is a man there who converted to Christianity. For years he kept his beliefs a secret from his friends and family, knowing that he would be in danger if he was found out.

Then he decided that if the Scripture he was reading was true…then Jesus had his back. He went on to share his faith with his family and now he is ministering to people in Yemen.

Worrying wasn’t going to do anyone any good. He gave the worrying to God.

The Cambridge Dictionary says, “worry is thinking about problems or unpleasant things that might happen in a way that makes you feel unhappy and frightened.”

Things that might happen is the problem. According to several studies somewhere around 85% to 95% of the things we worry about, actually don’t happen. That is a lot of wasted energy.

There are a variety of different studies and statistics that support this. One thing is for sure…we spend way too much time worrying about things that are out of our control.

In Andy Andrew’s book The Noticer, Jones, talks about the futility of worry and discusses the percentages of time being wasted. Jones says to focus on the 8 percent.

  • 40% of the things we worry about will never occur
  • 30% of the time, we worry about things that have already happened
  • 12% of our worry is about needless imaginings about our health
  • 10% would be petty-little-nothing worries about what people think
  • 8% are legitimate concerns

In Matthew 6:34, we read, “Therefore, stop worrying about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” This sounds like good advice.

Stop letting worry suck your energy and instead put your focus on Jesus and what God tells us in Scripture. This will equip you to be a hero.

Urgency Can Be Good or Bad, Depending on How You Use It

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I Find That Intentionally Creating a Sense of Urgency Can Increase Productivity

How you view and handle urgency is a choice. You can choose to use urgency to your benefit, or you can let urgency be a negative thing.

When something has urgency, it requires speedy action. If you’re standing in your front yard and a tornado is coming straight toward you…there would be some urgency to take cover from the storm.

Urgency is a pressing importance requiring speedy action.

Some people view urgency as positive…others not so much. The perspective with which you view urgency is the choice.

I have a relatively extensive and structured morning and evening routine. It might feel a little daunting to some people. 😊

As a part of that routine, I review my…

As I was going through the goal portion of my morning routine a few days ago, I realized we are rapidly approaching the end of 2022 and we are not where we need to be to accomplish our goals.

As I thought about this, my sense of urgency became elevated. We are going to need to start pushing extra hard to even get close to those goals.

This is where urgency, as a negative, begins to set in. One of the things that often happens in a situation like this is, you start running around like a chicken with its head cut off and no clear direction.

Or you can take control of the situation, choose to make the decisions needed and start moving forward.

Another part of my routine is to narrow the overwhelming number of things that need to be done down to the first next thing. This is a part of how I prioritize. What is the first next thing that needs to be done? One of the ways I do this is by reading through this list of eleven actions.

FIRST NEXT THING

  1. Start with prayer
  2. Get off my “BUT”, stop making excuses
  3. Put it on the calendar
  4. Don’t be afraid to ask for help (delegation / accountability)
  5. Take goals seriously (create a sense of urgency early)
  6. Maintain positive forward momentum
  7. Celebrate wins
  8. Don’t overthink it
  9. Break the goals down into brick size pieces
  10. Make goals about giving and not about getting
  11. Review progress regularly, and be accountable

#5 Take goals seriously (create a sense of urgency early)

As I read through this list I was thinking about moving forward with our goals. When I got to #5, take goals seriously (create a sense urgency early) I remembered where this came from.

Before I started Timber Creek Construction, I was a partner in another construction company. My role in this partnership was production management.

One of the things that seemed to happen constantly is that as we got nearer and nearer the completion date, the sense of urgency picked up. And with that, productivity picked up. I was amazed at how much more got done as the deadline approached.

That’s when I realized that if we would create that sense of urgency early, it would increase productivity throughout the entire project and the company. Now that was easier said than done.

The tricky thing is how to consistently create that sense of urgency early.  

Just like our company is behind on our goals and the sense of urgency is ramping up…

I should have created the sense of urgency EARLIER.

I can’t go back and change the past, but I can learn from it and change the future.

When We Ask God Man-sized Questions, We Are Limiting the Answers We Get

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We Need to be Asking God Sized Questions Instead

Asking a man-sized question is a sure way to get a man-sized answer. As humans it makes sense that we think in human terms, because we are human after all. But what could be possible if we quit limiting ourselves? Because when we incorporate these limitations, we are limiting God’s answer.

This is a little bit like the cute little girl who went into the pet store and shyly asked the store owner for a small rabbit. The store owner asked her what color she would like. “We have black ones, brown ones, white ones. What color would you like?”

The little girl said, “It doesn’t matter, my python won’t care.

The store owner asked a man-sized question. He made some presumptions about what the little girl’s plans were for the rabbit and then asked the question. We do this kind of thing all the time when asking questions of God. We limit His answers with our small questions.

God has a lot bigger plans for us than we have for ourselves.

In Luke 20:27-38, the Sadducees, who didn’t believe in a resurrection, asked Jesus a question about a woman who was childless when her husband died. According to the writings of Moses, the husband’s brother should marry her. In this story the brothers kept dying and the next one would marry her.

The question from the Sadducees was, “In the resurrection, whose wife would she be?”

This is one of those man-sized questions.

Jesus goes on to explain to them that marriage is a worldly thing designed for companionship, family and filling the earth. In Heaven there will be no need for marriage. We will be like the angles.

We need to be thinking bigger, out of the box questions and then have faith that God will answer them. This doesn’t mean that the answer will be what we think or expect. We need to change our simple-minded thinking.

We need to quit holding God back with our small questions.

In Mark 11:23-24, we are told that if we, “…tell a mountain to be lifted up and thrown into the sea, and don’t waiver, that it will happen”. I don’t know about you, but my small man-sized brain finds this hard to believe.

The first vision that comes to my mind is the mountain being lifted from the earth and floating to the nearest ocean and being dropped in. The Scripture doesn’t get into the specifics. Maybe it could involve some big excavation equipment or new technology.

Think about President Kennedy when he said that we would put a man on the moon…and we did. That sounded pretty far fetched when it was said, but it happened. President Kennedy had faith. This doesn’t mean that it was easy, or that a man just magically floated up to the moon.

This was a God-sized idea that required the faith and hard work of a lot of people.

We need to think bigger and have more faith. If we align our man-sized thinking with God’s and remove our human-sized limits, we will be amazed when that mountain is in the sea.

How Does One, Make All They Can, Save All They Can, Give All They Can?

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At First Glance, One Naturally Thinks Money…but it’s So Much More

I started writing about my core values as a life filter back in January of 2017. Core values are an important part of intentionally living our best lives, the lives that God has designed for each of us.

In that first post I said I would break down my core values in future posts. Well, here we are…almost five years later and I still have two left. Today we shorten the list to one. The core value for today is…

Make all I can, save all I can, give all I can.

This is a variation of the words of the 18th-century theologian and founder of Methodism, John Wesley. Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can. As one of my core values I wanted the focus on me and my business.

Growing up in the Methodist church these words were a part of my life from a young age. As it is with most things we hear when we’re young, it’s not until later in life that we grasp and appreciate the full meaning. As we mature, we begin to realize the importance of taking the blinders off and seeing the bigger picture.

Too often money and business get a bad rap. I believe that most businesses are not working to take advantage of people. Nor do I think that money is evil. It the lust after money that’s evil. Sure, there are cases where people and businesses are being selfish, but I don’t believe that to be the norm.

Make all you can, Save all you can, Give all you can

These are great words to live by and they also serve as a great business motto.

Make all you can –

Making all you can is about more than just money. Making is the process of making or producing something. It’s the qualities needed to make something. Making sounds a lot like building…making buildings, making businesses, making lives. Money is needed to make things, but it isn’t the only thing needed.

From a business perspective, if you don’t make money you won’t stay in business.

This is one of the reasons it’s one my core values…I tend to put making money lower on my list of my priorities. I use this core value to remind me not to do that.

Save all you can –

Like making…saving is not just about piling up money. Saving is reserving and not wasting. It is about spending time wisely. It’s about being thrifty and frugal.

I see figuring out ways to save as a challenging puzzle and I’m constantly looking for ways to solve it.

We should always expect the unexpected. Saving allows us to be better prepared for the unexpected.

Give all you can –

Giving is something that is often connected to money. Around the Holidays we are bombarded with opportunities to give. Once again giving is about so much more than just money.

One of the best ways to give is to share our skills and abilities.

Whether that is at our church, community organizations, or through our vocation. Sharing our gifts through work is honoring to God even if it’s something we get paid for. Last week we discussed the importance of service over sales. Service is about giving.

Finding the balance and not getting too focused on one thing or the other is important to operating a successful business and living a fulfilling life.

That’s why Make all I can, Save all I can, Give all I can, is one of my favorite core values.

Previous core valuer posts –

Using core values as a life filter

Honor God in all that I do

Intentional action

Take the blinders off an be more observant

Pay attention to detail

Spend time wisely, there is a limited amount

Never be satisfied with mediocrity

Find and maintain the balance in everything

Build the wall one brick at a time (previously, move the mountain one shovel at a time)

Remember that I have two ears and one mouth

Be accountable

Why is it That Many People Feel Like They Need to Hide in Plain Sight?

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Zacchaeus Wanted to See Jesus, But Didn’t Want Jesus to See Him

Is seems that most of us feel inadequate and unworthy. We think everybody else has it way “more together” than we do. Why do we, more often than not, sell ourselves short of our God given value?

We just don’t feel like we’re good enough.

This is not how God sees us!

Most of us have heard the Bible story about Zacchaeus climbing the sycamore tree.

As the story goes, Jesus was walking through Jericho. Zacchaeus wanted to see Him, but was a short man and had trouble seeing over the crowd, so he ran ahead and climbed up in a tree. When Jesus got there, He told Zacchaeus to come down so they could go to his house.

This upset the crowd, because Zacchaeus was a sinner. He was a tax collector after all. The people felt that he was unworthy of Jesus.

I’ll bet Zacchaeus agreed with them because most of us feel unworthy.

I think Zacchaeus might have climbed up in the tree to observe Jesus from a distance without being seen. That’s sounds like something that I’d do.

But Jesus did see him and went to his house. Later that day after they had spent some time together, Zacchaeus told Jesus, “I will give half of my property to the poor. And I will now pay back four times as much to everyone I have ever cheated.”

Most of us like not being seen, because if we are, something might be expected from us, and this is scary.

Anonymity is much more comfortable.

Our egos are so fragile and we’re afraid if we put ourselves out there, they might get broken.

There are two points that I want to make today.

First, this is not what God wants for us. He has made us in His image and He has given us a purpose. If we keep it to ourselves, there will be a lot of people that miss out on the gift we have to share.

Don’t keep your purpose hidden from the world.

Second, we need to support those around us. Encourage them to step out of their comfort zones. Help them up when they get knocked down. Assist them in going forward again.

Those people who were upset that Jesus was going to Zacchaeus’s house saw Zacchaeus as the world did, not as God did.

We need to see people for who they can be, not as they see themselves.

God working in us can help us become who we are meant to be. God and us working together can help others become who they are meant to be.

Don’t hide in a tree. Get down and get to work.

Why is it That Businesses Put More Emphasis on Sells Over Service?

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It Doesn’t Have to Be One or the Other…It’s Our Job as Businesses to Find Both

When thinking about business ownership or leadership, the focus often is on making a lot of money. Not that there’s anything wrong with making money. The problem is when money becomes the driving factor.

We’re all aware of those people who have been super profitable in their business. You know…those rags to riches stories where someone started out with nothing, came up with a new idea and became wealthy.

Making a lot of money is a big reason why so many people decide to start a business.

It doesn’t help that we are constantly being bombarded with some new product, formula or process that is a “shortcut to wealth”. The problem is…most of them aren’t.

This isn’t to say that they can’t or won’t work. What I’m saying is…more often than not…these things sound better than they really are.

After my wakeup call in 2012, while recovering from my accident, I began researching ways to share my construction expertise and business experience with others. I thought, I’ll help construction companies and customers through coaching and consulting.

The problem was…I knew how to run a construction company…not do virtual coaching and/or consulting.

So, I subscribed, bought, downloaded and joined multiple programs, courses, classes and trainings in an effort to turn this new idea into a business.

It didn’t go as well as was expected.

Not that I didn’t gain a lot of valuable knowledge, insight and things that I can and will use.

The problem is that it was the proverbial “getting the horse ahead of the cart” thing. We’re being bombarded through commercials, emails, social media, etc. with the next shiny new thing that is going to be the answer to all our business prayers.

All those things that I was sure were what I needed to get my next business up and going…weren’t.

This led to feeling like I was, “wandering, lost in the business dessert”.

After feeling this way for a while, I began to doubt myself. Maybe that great idea I had wasn’t so great after all. Too often this kind of thinking leads to saying to heck with it and giving up.

In our mastermind last week, Becky Warner shared that she had an aha moment when she realized that starting out trying to sell too much, too early, was a mistake. She said, we need to start with connection and community.

Connection and community…these are the same as SERVICE!

When I heard her sharing her thoughts about this, I felt relief. It was a confirmation that I wasn’t the only one feeling like this.

Starting the journey across the business dessert with unrealistic expectations leads to wandering.

The information that Becky shared with the group confirmed what I had been feeling. I needed to look back at what had worked in my construction business and that was…focus on service, not on sells.

This isn’t to say that sells don’t matter. What I am saying is…

Our businesses are more than just profit.

We have all been given skills and abilities that provide a service to others. If we figure out what that purpose is and use it, we can sell more and make more.

97% of businesses fail within 10 years. This is in large part to their focus on sells and not service. I don’t know about you, but I want to be part of the thriving 3% of businesses that succeed.

If you provide service…the sells will follow.

Why is it That We Too Often Confuse Simple and Easy?

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No One Ever Said That Living Right Would Be Easy

I recently read a blog post from Rabbi Evan Moffic titled, The Difference Between Simple and Easy. As someone who is good at making simple things more complicated than they need to be, I had a light bulb moment while reading. I realized how much of the time we confuse these two.

Simple and easy do not mean the same thing.

For example:

“The Ten Commandments are simple. They are a list of ten things we should and shouldn’t do.

But are they easy? No. If they were easy, we would leave in a world without murder, theft, adultery, or conflict. They are simple but not easy.

Certain acts are easy and simple. Baking a cake from a cake mix is simple and easy. You pour out the mix, add water and eggs, stir, put in the oven, and enjoy.

Some acts can be easy but not always simple. Habits often fall into this category. Take driving, for example.

Driving is easy for many of us if we have been doing it for years. But anyone who has sat with a new teenage driver in a car knows it is not simple! It becomes easy over time.

Now the most meaningful category: Simple but not easy.

Following a diet is an example of simple but not easy. We generally know which foods are healthy and which are not. But we do not have an easy time sticking to them.”

Living right is simple but not easy.

It is easy to look at others and compare ourselves to them, both good and bad.

In Luke 18:9-14, Jesus shows us an example of a Pharisee and a tax collector doing this.

By all appearances the Pharisee had been living right. He was not greedy or dishonest. He had been faithful in his marriage, followed the law and tithed. All things that are part of living as God wants us to.

Then he did something that God doesn’t want us to. He built himself up by comparing himself with a tax collector.

Normally tax collectors were known for overcharging people when collecting taxes and would pocket the extra. They were looked down on by the Jewish people of that time.

The tax collector was belittling himself and feeling inadequate and unworthy. He was asking God for forgiveness.

Neither of these men was completely right or completely wrong.

We need to be careful to not compare ourselves to others.

We need to compare ourselves to what God wants.

This is simple, but not easy.

Like the Ten Commandments as well as the rest of the Bible…it’s all very simple. But living it out in our daily lives isn’t easy.