How To Focus On What Is Important

Greetings to our OHI community; I wish you a lovely harvest season as the hot summer ends and coalesces into the warm colors and cooler temps of autumn. I love this time of year because it is a great time for introspection and reflection about life. In this issue, I discuss the importance of focusing your time on your highest priorities – living your best life doing what is most fulfilling and meaningful to you.

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12: 1-2

Translation: Stop allowing yourself to be overtaken by meaningless demands that waste time. Instead, focus on the things that matter most in life. Start by renewing your mind.

In our Focus I & II classes at OHI, our guests repeatedly state “not having enough time” is the main reason they fail to accomplish their top priorities. But the hard truth is there is plenty of time…they simply don’t yet understand how to manage their time according to their priorities.

If you were facing your last days on earth, would you be concerned with writing more emails, making more money, or spending more hours at your job? I doubt it. More likely, you would be finding ways to spend time with loved ones or making a difference in peoples’ lives.

Renewing your mindset is the first step toward prioritizing living life to its fullest.

Return Your Time to Your Control

Like many of you, when I was growing up my parents gave me chores to do, my teachers at school gave me homework to do, and I was held accountable if I failed to do them. When I was a little older, I got my first part time job. My boss gave me tasks to do and a schedule for the days I was to work; there were, of course, negative consequences if I failed to show up on time or to complete any of the tasks assigned. But none of these were personal goals that I chose for myself. In other words, my time was organized for me by others – my parents, teachers, and bosses.

When I went to college, I lived more independently than what I was used to at home. Wow, there were so many new and exciting things to do – new friends, sports events, clubs to join, and of course my classes, homework, and study. The problem was everything seemed important. And, because I didn’t know how to prioritize and manage my time, I got behind in my school work.

I struggled with this for a bit, but eventually learned how to better juggle my responsibilities with my interests. It wasn’t until I discovered Stephen Covey, that I found the Holy Grail of life management. In his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, I learned there are things we can control, influence, or be concerned about. And the real deception is focusing on concerns rather than what you can control and influence.  For the 7th habit, Sharpen the Saw, Stephen Covey tells the story of a man walking through the woods who comes upon a lumberjack swearing. He asks, “What’s wrong?” The tree cutter replies, “I have all these trees to cut but not enough time.” “Why?” “Because my saw blade is dull and it’s slowing me down.” “Why don’t you sharpen it?” “I don’t have time to stop!”

The lesson from this chapter is the lumberjack was focused on his concern – too many trees and not enough time. Instead of focusing on what he could control, which was sharpening his saw which would influence the amount of time the task would take.

Stephen’s methods were life-changing for me and helped me achieve the corporate success that I enjoyed. Stephen Covey’s time management techniques are not just for business, and for this reason, I introduced his time-management concepts to our OHI staff and guests in our Focus I & II classes. These skills are imperative, not only for prioritizing our goals, but to help our OHI community members manage the vital time necessary for their healing opportunities and keeping a razor focus on living a meaningful and purpose-driven life.

You Are THE Priority

I’ve had the opportunity to conduct pastoral care and counseling with many of our guests over the years. One of the top concerns I hear is people find it difficult to make themselves a priority. They feel they have neglected themselves – often while fulfilling the needs of others – it results in them feeling stuck, and not knowing how to break free.

“The Main Thing is to keep the Main Thing the Main Thing.” Stephen R. Covey

The challenge many of us face is that we don’t know what’s really important. There is always some urgent matter requiring our attention. Everything that demands our time seems important, so we believe we have to do everything. And, that’s where it goes sideways…because we are so busy, we don’t take the time to distinguish between what is truly important and what is not. When all we do is put out fires, we find ourselves in permanent crisis-management mode which creates stress – which in turn causes dis-ease (also known as, “health opportunities”).

“Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent,

and not enough time on what is important.” Steven Covey

Identifying what is most important to you, and enabling you to make time for it, is vital to living a fulfilling life. And, THE most important thing is taking care of you so, schedule self-care first!

What’s New at OHI

We are re-vamping all our classes at OHI, starting with our Focus I & II classes. Our Focus classes were developed in conjunction with Franklin Covey especially for OHI guests and teach you how to create a personal planning system that helps you manage your time more efficiently and effectively so that you can spend your time doing what is most fulfilling and significant for you. Our Focus classes give you the tools and training to get clear about what matters most, concentrate your time and energy on what’s necessary, and achieve your highest priorities.

As we update and re-vamp our classes, we are also re-branding our 21-day holistic-healing program as the OHI for Life Body-Mind-Spirit Program. We have future plans to develop additional programs…for example, we plan to develop 3 and 4-day retreats, each with a focus on a variety of topics. Therefore, rebranding our 21-day program makes room for this new growth to occur.

And lastly, I would like to introduce our new Referral Program. Many of you have been asking for this and we are finally delivering!

As a Christian-based healing ministry, we strive to keep our prices affordable and our program accessible to as many people as possible. We do not pay for advertising, which helps us keep our costs down. People get to know us through word-of-mouth referrals. When people experience the profound life-changing results of our program, they naturally want to tell their friends and loved ones about OHI. This is truly the best form of advertising and spreading the word about OHI, and now we are rewarding you for helping us grow the OHI community.

OHI’s New Referral Program

• Refer 1 Person — $1000 off your next stay*
• Refer 2 People — $1500 off your next stay*
• Refer 3 People — FREE week in a Courtyard room (OHI San Diego) or King room (OHI Austin)*

*Some restrictions may apply. See page 10 or call us for further details.

Happy Birthday OHI

September 19, 2022 marks 46 years of our tried and true body-mind-spirit healing program. In 1976, my parents, Bob and Pam Nees, along with Raychel Solomon focused on developing a program to detoxify, alkalize, nourish, and heal the body with a live, raw, plant-based food plan in a safe and sacred setting where people can become whole. Adopting the nutritional guidelines along with the mental, emotional, and spiritual practices are the core of OHI for Life’s Body-Mind-Spirit Program.

Since 1976 we have helped hundreds of thousands of people. I sincerely thank you for your decades of support!

Come to OHI for the Holidays

Plan on celebrating the holidays at OHI this year, and enjoy this heartfelt time of year with like-minded people in our warm and welcoming community. We go all out with our decorations, lights, and music to make the season special. It’s quite magical! Make sure to book early!

OHI, The Safest Place to be Outside of Your Home!

We continue to make upgrades to both of our facilities. At both locations, our OHI for Life Wellness Rooms are outfitted with a Molekule air purifier and 100% organic cotton linens and towels (including fitted sheets). We also brought Covid-19 testing in-house. At OHI San Diego: every guest room has wood flooring, high-speed internet, black-out shades, our guest room bathrooms have been renovated, and 80% of our food is from local organic farms. At OHI Austin, we added new wood flooring and carpet to our exercise classroom. We hope you come to experience our OHI for Life Wellness Rooms – designed with your safety and comfort in mind.

Call us to book your reservation today: (800) 588-0809. Or visit our website at www.optimumhealth.org.

Here’s wishing you health and wellness in this fall season.

Yours in prayer,

Robert P. Nees, Jr.

Senior Pastor and Chairman

OHI San Diego and OHI Austin