Being a leader is hard. Being a tired leader is harder. Most leaders I talk to feel like their brains have too many tabs open, and they can't find where the music is coming from. They love God. They love their families. They love their work. But they feel like they are running in mud. The "noise" in their head is too loud. When your mind is loud, you can't hear God. When you are stressed, you can't be a good dad. When you are tired, you make bad choices at work. It doesn’t have to stay this way. I spent a long time living in stress and anxiety. I always thought that peace was found in the absence of stress. I found that peace is not a feeling of no stress. Peace is a system for managing the stress. Think of your life like a garden. If you don't pull the weeds, the flowers won't grow. If you don't fertilize and water the soil, everything dies. This last year, I started helping Christian leaders "clean the garden" in 4 simple steps: Look: We find what is making you stressed. Breathe: We teach your body how to stay calm. Think: We change the way you talk to yourself. Plan: We build a simple list for your day so you don't have to wonder, which can lead to worry. The goal isn't just to do more work. The goal is to be Calm and Clear. When a leader is calm, everyone around him feels safe. When a leader is clear, the whole team wins. In a world of leaders who loudly talk about motivation and emotion, let's be quietly disciplined and thoughtful. Happy New Year. Let’s make 2026 the year of the Quiet Leader.

As Sunday winds down, it's easy to feel that pressure for the week ahead start to build. Here’s a simple, 5-minute tactic to replace that anxiety with intention. Tonight, before your week officially kicks off, take just five minutes to run this play. The How-To: 1. Review Your Intel (2 mins): Glance at your calendar for the coming week. Know the terrain: what are your big meetings, appointments, and deadlines? 2. Define Your Objective (2 mins): Look past the to-do list and ask yourself this one question: "What is my one spiritual objective this week?" Invite the Lord into this and ask him to help you to discover this daily win for the week! - Maybe it's to be more patient with your kids. - Maybe it's to pray for a specific coworker. - Maybe it's to listen more than you speak in meetings. - Maybe it's simply to find one moment of genuine gratitude each day. 3. Post Your Orders (1 min): Write that single objective down on a sticky note and put it on your laptop, bathroom mirror, or set a daily reminder on your phone. This simple act transforms your week from a series of reactive tasks into a focused mission. It gives you an objective to return to when things get busy, by centering yourself on something that helps you to glorify God and share how Jesus has impacted how you move tactically through the world. Let's hear it: What's your objective for the week? Share it in the comments below!

This post is while we have 1 person in our group, and there is not any proof that anyone actually wants this for their life. I am reminded this morning of Proverbs 3:5-6. "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." Tactical application: We follow directions from God, who is our leader. He knows that our enemy will try to distract and disorient us by making life complicated. When we learn to trust in God with our heart, we learn to listen to his commands. This makes life easier for us, when we limit the amount of people directing us. How many people in your life are giving you commands? Does the number of people leading you relate to how complicated your life is? How have you removed people who don't give you good directions in the past? Let us know your tactics and questions? Squad up and let's help each other mature in the faith!