Right now, many deadlines are pressing in on me. Has that ever happened to you?

I remember when the only pressure I had was that of sermon preparation for Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesday night. While those deadlines were pressing in on me weekly and it was real, it seems the longer I am in ministry the more deadlines I face.

I have the weekly deadline of Sunday sermon preparation. But if I speak away from my church during the week, then responsibilities increase. Three weeks ago, I preached on Sunday morning, spoke in Alabama on Tuesday, spoke in Missouri on Thursday, hosted and spoke at our Men's Conference on Friday and Saturday, went through Sunday, and then left for the Holy Land on Monday.

Most of the way to Israel, I was working on church matters and preparing to speak to our tour group while in the Holy Land. While on the way home, sermon preparation was raging again and additional writing assignments, both for our church and others that serve the greater body of Christ, were looming. Deadlines. Deadlines. Deadlines.

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Every pastor and leader I know experiences the pressure and inevitability of deadlines. For most of us, those deadlines have something to do with preparation. As I evaluate my life and schedule, I give most of my life to preparation. I am always preparing to speak, or write or lead a meeting.

It occurs to me that deadlines pressure and influence pastors and leaders continually. Therefore, what do you do when the deadlines are pressing in on you?

Let me suggest that you take the following actions:

1. Prioritize. Prioritizing your commitments is imperative. I encourage you to take the time to list all the deadlines set before you. For a pastor, I believe our number-one assignment is to feed the people of God from the Word of God. Great teaching and preaching will cover a multitude of your sins! Never let your preparation of teaching the Word slide. This is why I give my mornings to God.

Once you have written down all of your demands and pressing deadlines, prioritize. Determine what is first, second and beyond. Operate and work your way down the list. Check off the accomplishments one by one. Any leader under pressure always does better when he knows progress is being made.

2. Prepare. Preparation is the commitment to get "it" done and to get "it" done in the highest manner. Nothing eases the tension and pressure more than preparation. Therefore:

•        Prepare well.
•        Prepare continually.
•        Prepare for the best.
•        Prepare for the worst.
•        Prepare for success.

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