Thoughts on my "career"...

Wrote this for a discussion posting in my Human Resources Management class...it turned out to be more reflective, thought-provoking that I had expected.

My personal experience with career development has been somewhat limited. But maybe “limited” is not the right word. I’ve worked a number of jobs and learned a lot about the workplace, people problems, and work ethics. I’ve discovered little things that I generally enjoy doing, but have found myself unable to settle into a single this-is-my-calling sort of job. There’s a tendency to look down on myself or feel somewhat “behind”—especially when I see friends my age succeeding along paths they seem to truly enjoy. The General Career Periods chart is actually kind of encouraging to me. I’m still a “twenty-something,” who can fit into the Early Career period—identifying interests and exploring different jobs. I sincerely hope that this not knowing what I want to do is just a phase.

My working life thus far has been…scattered. I worked for a couple of years in a franchised restaurant, then for a while in a small, privately-owned eatery. I enjoy cooking, serving, and even cleaning, but the frantic pace of the restaurant business is not something I’d care to settle into. Two years as a manager at a movie theater opened my eyes to the wonderful world of supervising teenagers and dealing with a plethora of customer service, um…issues. Threading projectors, splicing film, fixing mechanical problems….that was a lot of fun. Now I’m working for a small non-profit organization that I feel is lacking vision. I do a lot of office work and graphic design…overall enjoyable, however tedious it may be at times. Through all of these work experiences has been my ongoing, intense involvement with my church. I lead worship services, help with the kids program, and head-up the youth group. This has given me a LOT of experience in dealing with people.

The common thread running through my jobs at the theater, the non-profit, and my church...what intrigues me…is the idea of articulating and executing a vision. Re-imagining the organization…thinking about what it would look like if it were at its best….and then thinking about ways to help the organization become that. But I am more and more convinced that I want to help PEOPLE in living deep, abundant lives....not corporations improving the bottom line. That’s generally what I hope my work life is based on in 10, 20, 30 years. I just haven’t decided the context in which I’d like to do that sort of vision finding/casting/execution. I've thought about teaching...counseling. By the time I started cnsidering these, though, I had too many hours in business areas to change degree plans. The program I'm hoping to start for my master's is in Spiritual Formation and Leadership. This will be an aid to me in my personal life...and will help me to lead others into a with-God kind of life. But I've wondered if I should go for a degree in teaching or counseling instead....or maybe I'm already on the right track. Maybe the MSFL will help me to gain clarity on this.

Awareness Test

Found this yesterday....

Jesus for President - Blog Tour

I just ordered the book from Amazon today. It looks really great.

For God alone my soul waits...

"For God alone my soul waits in silence..."





This business of waiting is intertwined with Jesus' words "Let your light shine before others." I am a light to the world only insofar as I am attentive to the Light within. That's what it is to wait "for God alone" in silence.


So I sit, stand, wait in His Light...and become filled with Light...to then be Light to the world around me. To go into the world, seeing it in a new way--through the sheen of His Light, causing it to be seen in a new way, and causing it to change--to be new in some small (yet somehow very great) way.



Jesus called us the Light of the world.


"...You are the One in charge and You have all the power; and the glory, too, is all Yours forever, which is just the way we want it." (from Dallas Willard's paraphrase of the Lord's Prayer)

YOU (being God) have ALL the power and ALL the glory. Which means that none of it is mine.

None of it is mine.

None of it is mine. No power, no glory.

I have no power, I have no glory. None of my own. It's all His. Yours, Abba.

This frees me from two things that plague me (though my guess is that I'm not alone in this):
1) Thinking I am/should be omnipotent. All powerful. That I can/must do everything. "Everything" includes controlling schedules and destinies (my own, of course, and others' if they'll let me!).
2)Trying to appear "glorious" to others -- opinion/impression management.
These are not what God created me to do or be. Meditating on the reality that He has ALL the power and glory...will gradually change deep-seated beliefs, and I will at last be free to live Life as God intended it. Waiting on Him. Walking with Him. Being filled with His Light.


What's your idea of a practicing Christian? I mean, what images come to mind when you hear the words "practicing Christian"? Be honest and attentive.

"A practicing Christian must above all be one who practices the perpetual return of the soul into the inner sanctuary, who brings the world into its Light and rejudges it, who brings the Light into the world with all its turmoil and its fitfullness and re-creates it..."
~Thomas Kelly

You are the Light of the world.

"Let your Light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your father in heaven."
~Jesus (in Matthew 5:16)

Meet Momo

This is Momo. He is a common marmoset from Austria. We met in the March 2008 National Geographic. His diet consists of insects, spiders, small vertabrates, bird eggs, and tree sap--he spends some 30% of his time finding food. He's a fast runner, and excellent jumper, and will live up to 16 years. Momo learns by imitation--one of the most complex forms of learning. He also has a sense of 'object permanance' - knowing that something out of sight still exists. Interesting, yes?

What I find most interesting is that Momo and I have something in common (aside from the fact that science lumps us both into the 'primate' order). He learns by watching....and that requires varying degrees of attention. Momo's problem is that his short attention span prevents him from developing more complex behaviors.

Me too. As a Christ-follower, I am to learn by imitation. Devoting time and attention to watching him...and doing what he does. I don't seem to have a problem focusing intensively on class assignments, work projects, my schedule, finances, food, and other's opinions of me. But when it comes to devoting time and attention (beyond the daily 'quiet time') to Christ as Teacher and role model, I'm afraid I kick all too easily into Momo mode. Maybe you have this problem as well?

(Thank you Wikipedia and National Geographic for introducing me to the little guy.)

Letting go...

"Uncrowd my heart, O God
'Til silence speaks
in your still, small voice.
Turn me away from
the hearing of words,
the making of words,
and the confusion of much speaking
to listening,
waiting,
stillness,
and silence..."
~From Esther DeWaal's "Lost in Wonder"

Listening...waiting...stillness...silence. These require relinquishment. Letting go. Releasing the many, many things that tear at my heart and constantly demand all thought, full attention. Turning away from my own "wisdom"...that nagging urge to figure it out. Abandoning myself, instead, to God's power. His grace. His generative life-giving Spirit that gives all life and meaning and depth...and defies description. Being cheerfully expectant of the next glimpse I catch of his work in my life and in the world around me.

Buckner in Honduras...

Things are progressing with the shoe drive. These kinds of activities can so easily become just another thing to do. I read an article on Buckner's site the other day that reminded me of the reason we're doing the drive...reminded me that what we're doing really is going to change lives.

Honduras Ready for Buckner Aid

Talking to a member of the youth group last night, I got a glimpse into another heart for service. Zannie was planning on school-related trip to Europe--she decided not to go, not just because of the money. She said she'd rather give the time/effort/money to helping others. Cool, huh? From a high school junior.

Love God, Love people. Isn't that Christ's command? But doing so will require getting off our collective butt and acting on behalf of others.

Whew!

Well, well, well. A while back, I sent an email out to various contacts through the RRCA (where I work)...fishing for business, you might say. I said I was available to do simple design work (business cards and the like) for individuals, small businesses, and non-profits at an affordable price. About two weeks ago, I got a call from someone with the Ruidoso Chamber Music Festival about designing their 2008 brochure! Kind of a big deal, really, since they send their stuff out all over the country. Anyway...I met with them last week and they talked to me about what they had in mind. I worked on a layout and color scheme all this week and met with them again this afternoon to show them what I came up with. They loved it! Truly a relief because, to be honest, I'm not very confident in my design skills...yet.
So...they were very pleased, I'll be finishing it up this week and getting it ready to go to the printer. I'm not making much at it--but they're giving me some ad space in their program, so that'll help get the word out. Besides, it kinda feels good to do something for less than its really (by industry standards) worth...for an organization who really does need it.

Other happenings....let's see. My graduation "duds" have been ordered - I'm almost there! The certification classes with HWG-IWA are going well...I've completed two and will be starting three more on March 17. That will meet all the requirements for the first certificate....then I'll move on to the other two. I'm really hoping that these classes, combined with summer training at Lynda.com will prepare me to work from home come August.

The SOS Shoe Drive is coming along. Sandy (at the newspaper) has been sooooo helpful and supportive. I don't think anyone who picks up a local newspaper will be able to get away from it without learning about the drive. Praying for grace from God and favor with the community.

With all of this going on....it can be difficult to stay fully present to Now. But..."I am convinced that [the every-day happenings of life, my accomplishments/failures, and the dis/approval of others] nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate me from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (From Romans 8....my paraphrase, obviously).