Tag Archive - Goals

Three Words: Mindfulness

January 12, 2011 in Faith, Miscellany, Receptivity of God with 1 Comment

black-waterfalls-evening-foliagephoto © 2010 Forest Wander | more info (via: Wylio)

As I mentioned yesterday, I will be breaking down my three words for the year into some action plans.  Yesterday I talked about my first word Acceleration.  Today I will be talking about Mindfulness.

To me mindfulness is not necessarily being kind to one another or minding one’s business.  I see mindfulness as being present in the moment.  It is thinking about the future but not longing on what is to come.  The example I gave the other day was about going on a trip and enjoying the trip instead of worrying about traffic or the item you forgot back home, or if it is going to be too warm or cold, or worrying about the long lines.  There are the little moments in our lives that we miss because we are too worries about the big picture instead of the small details.

Here is how I see Mindfulness playing out in my life this year:

Personnel

  • Plan ahead/Setting Goals: I think we do a pretty good job in planning ahead.  We sit down and plan out when I am going to take time off and what we are going to do with our time off.  However there are still things that we need to plan ahead for and be specific about the details.  If I want to live in the moment I need to feel comfortable that everything is taken care of to the best of our ability before I can let my mind rest.  Instead of planning a month or two ahead, perhaps we need to look at 5-6 months ahead  in order to make things are really taken care of.
  • Pick up a hobby: I have had lots of hobbies over the years, I have drawn cartoons, collected baseball cards, played a variety of instruments, and played sports just to name a few.  It seems the last 6 or 7 years of my life that has gone away.  One of the biggest factors in that is having a few kids and going to graduate school and now being a pastor.  However, now that we are settled in one place for awhile I would like to pick a hobby or two back up.  I think in doing this I will be more relaxed in my life and able to not only enjoy my life but excel.

It is not about the quantity of time that I spend on a project or with my family, it is the quality.  It is possible for me to sit in the same room with my kids the whole day and not interact with one another.  They could be watching TV or playing with their toys and I could be working on the laptop or watching TV myself.  I don’t want that to happen, I want to be interacting with my kids, and my wife.  I want us to remember the good times that we have with one another, I want to laugh with them and show them how much I love them.  This is what I mean by being mindful.

Professional

  • Plan Ahead/Setting Goals: I know I have this listed in the personal section as well but I think it is important for me to use this as a goal professionally as well.  I would like to stay ahead at least one liturgical season when it comes to worship planning. I think that way I will be more present in the current season instead of worrying about what will come next.  Also I want to set goals for myself professionally so I know what I want/need to be working on in my development as a pastor.
  • Actively searching for God Moments: Like I mentioned yesterday, I want/need to be searching for God moments in my life.  Being mindful as to how God works in my life will be an amazing thing for me and I believe change my life personally as well as professionally.  I want to find a way to share these God moments with the important people in my life. I believe this blog is one way as well as on Twitter and Facebook.  

When I think about this word more and more I believe that it is leading me towards a direction of preparedness in my life personally and professionally so I can take a break and see God around me.  The more I can do that the more I think I can be mindful in all that I do.

Can you help me think of other things I can do in my personal or professional life when it comes to Mindfulness?

Three Words: Acceleration

January 11, 2011 in Community, Faith, Miscellany, Receptivity of God with 1 Comment

Speeding inside a tunnelphoto © 2008 Luis Argerich | more info (via: Wylio)

This year I will be joining the ranks of people like Chris Brogan in focusing my time and energy and my life on three words.  These words will help guide my actions and decisions as I live out 2011.  Over the next few days I will be looking at each word and expand upon my action plans in relating these words to my life.  The first word is Acceleration.

As I mentioned in my original post this is perhaps the most important word for me.  I want to move this year, not only physically, but mentally and spiritually as well.  I want to be on the move because when I envision my actions this year I see great things happening in my life personally and professionally.

Here are some of my goals as they relate to Acceleration:

Personally

  • I want to lose weight – I have been overweight my entire life, and my goal is to be under 300 pounds by the end of the year.  So far I have joined a local gym and I am taking steps in exercising and eating right.  The gym that I joined is in Baldwinsville, so it is easy for me to get too and it is harder for me to make excuses not to go.
  • I want to get out in the community more — Most of my life is spent in the church or at home.  Granted I don’t have much more time to spare — but I do want to get out into the community more and make more connections.  In a former life (pre seminary and pre children) I would go to a lot of coffee houses and open mics and I really miss that.
  • I want to get organized –  Lately I have been watching the show Horders.  Now I don’t run the risk of being featured on that show, but I do have alot to do when it comes to organization.  I have many file cabinets full of papers from different time periods in my life and I need to consolidate and organize.

Professionally

  • I need to vision — I have been working with the council and congregation on creating an identity for St. Mark’s.  We have worked together to create a vision of youth ministry and theater ministry for the congregation.  The people of St. Mark’s have pledged to help these ministries take shape through their time, talents and money.  I need to continue to discern how these ministries are going to function within the church and my role as their pastor.
  • I need to be out of the office more — There is so much to do during the week I don’t get into the community as much as  I would like too.  This year I want to make more of a presence in the community of Baldwinsville.   Instead of working on my sermon in my office I can do it in a coffee shop.  Or I can take a book and sit in Panera for awhile and read.  Whatever it is I want to be out and about and have a presence both in my office at certain times but also in the community.
  • I need to search for God Moments– At Calumet we would call any connection we had with God a God moment.  This could happen personally when you would wake up and take a look over the lake or it could happen learning groups when a camper would have a break through moment with their faith.  These moments were always amazing.  I realize that I need more God moments in my life.  One of the ways I am accomplishing this is first by making a commitment to read through the entire Bible in one year, and I will continue to move and accelerate my life as I actively search for God moments.  I believe the more God moments I find and I share, the deeper my faith as well as others will become.

These are some of the action plans that I will embark upon this year.

Can you help me think of other things I can do in my personal or professional life when it comes to Acceleration?