3096441608_19f60480b5_oEarly in the 20th century Vilfredo Pareto noticed that 20% of the pea pods in his garden contained 80% of the peas (he was probably minding just his peas because he didn’t say anything about his q’s).  Since he was an economist he noticed several other similar relationships:

20% of the population owned 80% of the land

20% of the customers provide 80% of the profits

20% of the customers have 80% of the complaints

20% of your time yields 80% of your results . . . and so on

It’s fascinating how this shows up in our lives and in the church,

  • 20% of the congregation does 80% of the ministry
  • 20% of the congregation provides 80% of the revenue
  • 20% of the congregation has 80% of the complaints (okay, so it doesn’t always work, but you get the idea)
  • Now the challenge is to find the right 20%.  As you look at your life consider these questions:

Which 20% of the items in your life are causing you frustration?

Which 20% of the items in your life are a source of joy and peace?

We can confuse activity for accomplishment.  There are aspects in our lives that can keep us busy but don’t produce the results you desire.  Without a clear sense of priorities you may be simply rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic – it looks nice but it doesn’t  matter in the long run.  Don’t let the urgent crowd out what’s really important in your life.  Your lack of time may actually be a lack of priorities.

So what’s really important?  Jesus reveals the answer as he responds to a question from one of the scribes, “What commandment is foremost of all?”

Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘HEAR, O ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD; AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.’  “The second is this, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”  (Mark 12:29-31)

Fulfilling these two commandments will always be a wise investment of time.  What do you need to eliminate and what do you need to start so you can maximize your 20%? Please share your thoughts below…

Higgins, RickDr. Rick Higgins
Professor of Discipleship, Columbia International University