Over a month ago, I challenged myself to become a more effective evangelist. I had been reading several books on the topic of focus and three of them mentioned a single strategy to remain diligent in my work over a long period of time. My issue had always been a lack of consistency, so “The Red X Strategy,” as it was named, seemed like the obvious choice to break my inconsistent habits in order to produce more content.

“The Red X Strategy,” also known as the “The Seinfeld Strategy” (from famous comedian, Jerry Seinfeld who promoted the idea) is a simple way to measure your consistency in your work. Each day you complete a task for your work, in my case writing anywhere from 500 to 1000+ words, I would draw a large red “X” on my calendar. As the days went on, the red Xs would interconnect like a chain wrapping around each week. I liked seeing this chain and I didn’t want to break it.

The result? After 35 days straight of merely showing up to write every single day, I had produced 21k+ words, 2 short eBooks drafted and revised, a rebranded catechetical curriculum, 5 book covers designed as added client work, and more quality time than I had ever had with my family than I had ever had before. On top of that, I finished my first 5k run and even managed to squeeze in 6 new blogposts.

It was a VERY productive 5 weeks.

The Bible tells us that the “Red X Strategy” is based on solid, theological values:

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

-James 1:5-8

When we are inconsistent with our lives, we are “double-minded,” always thinking about multiple projects to the point we live double lives. On one had, we desire to fulfill our own will and on the other, we desire to satisfy God’s will for us. The problem is, we are blinded by our passions and we are unable to discern what exactly is God’s will.  We find ourselves ignoring our loved ones in order to pursue our passions or vice-versa, and we never really find a happy medium. We never arrive at wisdom, but we do pile our to-do list higher and higher.

We cannot gain wisdom unless we focus. This is one of the reasons I believe Jesus died on a Cross, because when the two beams were placed, one of top of the other, they create crosshairs, a single point of focus that we must always have in our sights in order to achieve our ultimate goal: that of our salvation.

With Christ nailed directly to the middle of the Cross, the blood that poured from his body turned the sacred wood into a “red X” in which our journey towards sanctification begins. To achieve anything worth achieving, you must focus, pick up your cross, and follow Him. When you align your will with God’s, he gives you wisdom, which results in right judgement of your priorities, consistency in your work and, most importantly, peace of mind in knowing that all of your efforts are focused on completing one, primary task:

Knowing, loving, and serving HIM.