Cheating the Church

Andy Stanley introduced a concept of "Cheating the Church" that I believe everyone should embrace. It's a model that, although Stanley proposes is a church staff model, I believe it can be incorporated into any business/workplace arena.

Here's the basics...No one should be working more than 45-50 hours a week. For Stanley, his church staff has to keep track of their hours and if they are routinely going over the 50 hour max, then repercussions set in. For one of my pastor friends, Charles, if his staff exceeds the hour max, he will sit them down and talk about potential job loss. The idea is that the church should not be to blame for family issues, marital issues, or personal issues. Each person needs to seek and pursue wholeness in spiritual, familial and personal realms. They can not do this if they are workaholics.

While choosing to cheat is a definite plus for church staff, it is important for everyone to choose to cheat whatever their occupation is. This does not mean, cheat the company of hard work, but it does mean taking personal days with some level of consistency to get away from the mundane. It does mean if you have the choice between making it home for dinner with your wife/husband or staying the extra 2 hours to get an objective completed, you choose your spouse everytime.

Rick Warren throws out an ideal that I agree with (though some times its hard to incorporate. He says everyone should

DIVERT DAILY-What can you do to get away for a little while each day?
WITHDRAW WEEKLY- It should not always be rush..rush..rush. Can you section off a few hours that are solely for your own personal wholeness?
QUIT QUARTERLY- Get away for a weekend from the routine. Whether its taking the spouse to a bed and breakfast or taking the kids to an indoor water park or just getting away in solitude to spend time with nature and with God.
ABANDON ANNUALLY- Two weeks of the year should simply be you, completely separated from any type of work.

Choosing to cheat makes you more effective in the Revolution in the long run. Any thoughts?