This week I read Wayne Cordeiro’s Leading On Empty: Refilling Your Tank And Renewing Your Passion. It was a very interesting book. Cordeiro stresses the importance of continually refueling and refreshing yourself, so that you can continue to minister within your strengths and passions.

Cordeiro speaks from experience. He describes a point in his life where he hit the wall. He had poured himself out so much and so often that he had nothing left to give. He was burnt out, stressed, and depressed, and in danger of seriously impacting his health and life if he didn’t make some serious and immediate changes.

Leading On Empty describes those changes. It is also a plea to others to put safeguards into effect before reaching the point of burnout.

While I don’t feel that I’m to that point, I do have seasons of life and ministry that tend to drain me. And so, Cordeiro’s advice hit pretty close to home, in many ways. There are several things I’ve decided to implement in my life as a result of reading Leading On Empty.

• I am placing a series of warning signals into my life and schedule that will alert me when I am approaching potential burn out. These include such things as monitoring how many evenings in a row I am away from home, doing ministry; allowing my wife to have “veto-power” over many of my ministry commitments; developing people in my life who will hold me more accountable in certain, specific areas.
• I am praying and examining my life to discover and discern my top 5 percent of life. Cordeiro explains that 85 percent of what I do, anyone can do. Ten percent of what I do, someone with a modicum of training should be able to accomplish. But 5 percent of what I do, only I can do. I have to discover this 5 percent and make it the epicenter of my life, and learn how to delegate much of the rest. More on that in a moment…
• I am seeking to identify the specific things in my life that refresh and fill me, and the specific things that drain and deplete me. There must be a balance between these things in order for me to be most effective.
• I must develop the habit of solitude. I must seek time to be alone, away from all distractions: phone, email, FaceBook, Twitter, kids, music…
• I will take a hard look at my stewardship of my energy. I have to give the best portions of my energy to those things that I find in my top 5 percent.
• I must develop a life of intentionality. I must be intentional in the realms of my relationship with God, my marriage, my family life, my personal growth, and my finances. I’m sure God will bring to light other areas as I grow in these.
• I will work to develop a “life cadence”, a rhythm of life that will sustain me. This has daily, weekly, monthly and yearly aspects, and is crucial to making my life balanced.
• I have already scheduled into my calendar six Personal Retreat Days (PRDs) throughout 2011. These will be days where I retreat from the busyness of life, phones, messages, and get away. I will review the last few weeks of my life and ministry, and look forward into the next several, planning, strategizing, setting goals. I will spend some time soaking up the presence of God and reveling in his Word. And during these times, I will gauge how I am doing in several different areas of my life, being brutally honest. I want to make sure I am on my way to being the best Jeff Randleman that I can possibly be.

This is a lot. I know. But I feel that these are changes that must be made for me to become the best that I can be. God has created me for a specific purpose. I do not want to spin my wheels in areas that aren’t contributing to my growth.

And so, I will seek to discover my top 5 percent. Cordeiro gives us his:

• A vibrant, growing relationship with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
• A healthy and genuine relationship with my spouse.
• An authentic family that is close to God and close to one another.
• A God-pleasing ministry.
• A physically healthy body and a creative soul.
• Taking time to enjoy life with family and friends.

Not a bad place to start… In fact, with my first PRD, I will take this list and pray over it, seeking to refine it and personalize it for my life.

If you are in ministry, especially a very busy ministry (and who isn’t?), I would suggest that you take a look at Wayne Cordeiro’s book, Leading On Empty. It might just help prevent you from reaching the end of your rope.

If you are interested in reading Wayne Cordeiro’s book, Leading On Empty, you can purchase it at Amazon.com.

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