Dream Date

He was clutching a handful of cash.  He looked happy as he walked away from the bank teller.  He came over to where I was sitting in the bank lobby and I commented that it looked like he had lots of money.

“I do have a lot of money,” he agreed.

“Do you have plans for how you want to spend all that money?” I asked.

He grinned.  “I am going on a date.”

“That sounds like fun.”  He agreed and volunteered to tell me about the planned date.

The young man appeared to be about high school age.  He has Down’s Syndrome.  I wondered if he was going to prom.

“We are going to Olive Garden restaurant to eat and then we are going to a movie at the brand new movie theater and then we are going to watch the sunset.”

“Wow.  That will be a wonderful date.”

“Yes.  I always wanted a girlfriend who has cowboy boots and a cowboy hat.”

“Do you have boots and a hat?”  I asked because he was not wearing any.

“Yes.  I like horses too.”

“I do too.  I have some horses.”

“Oh.  What are their names?”

I told him our horses names and then asked him the name of his girlfriend.

“I don’t know her name yet because I have not met her but when I do we will go on a date.”

His mother had overheard our conversation and smiled about it.

I got kinda choked up.  That is a nice young man who knows what he wants.  He has goals about getting a girlfriend who meets his criteria and has planned out a wonderful date night.  Lucky girl!

 

Suggestions From A Searcher — Part Twelve

This is the twelfth section of Suggestions From A Searcher.  It is about the paradox of freedom through structure by persevering in daily disciplines.

https://cowboylawyer.wordpress.com/2012/06/05/persevering-in-daily-disciplines/

Suggestions From A Searcher — Part Eleven

This is the eleventh installment of Suggestions From A Searcher.  It is about action plans for implementing your goals.

https://cowboylawyer.wordpress.com/2012/06/04/specific-action-plans/

Suggestions From A Searcher — Part Nine

This is the ninth installment of Suggestions From A Searcher.  It is about your unique mission in life.

https://cowboylawyer.wordpress.com/2012/05/31/your-unique-mission-in-life/

Suggestions From A Searcher — Part Eight

This excerpt is about visualizing the person whom you want to be.

https://cowboylawyer.wordpress.com/2012/05/30/this-is-the-eig/

Suggestions From A Searcher — Part Six

This is a link to my book, Suggestions From A Searcher.  It is about your purpose in life.

https://cowboylawyer.wordpress.com/2012/05/28/whose-are-you/

Life Coaching

Recently, I have learned that there are those who offer their services as one’s “life coach.”  Presumably, a life coach can help one set goals, get organized, and, generally, get one’s act together. 

So I talked with an experienced life coach.  She had some very valuable advice, including constructive criticism, with real life examples of how I could have handled many situations in better ways. 

She explained in detail, not just generalities, what I should do to be a better person.  This was not a cookie cutter session in which the life coach gave vague suggestions that could apply to anyone, such as the horoscope writers.  This guidance was specific for me and the areas of my life in which I needed to improve.  It really hit home.  I actually became repentant.  I resolved to work on myself.

I am required to report back to my life coach weekly, at which time I am asked probing questions.  She has no boundaries.  I have been asked whether I timely filed my taxes.  I have been asked if I cleaned out the chimney and whether my tires are in good shape for winter driving.  In particular, my life coach questions my preparation for upcoming tasks, such as cases going to trial. 

Often the questioning makes me uncomfortable, but I feel compelled to answer, even about my weight, dietary practices, exercise frequency, and church attendance.  My life coach is interested in helping me with every aspect of my life.

I am overdue for my next life coaching session so I better call Mom tomorrow.

Your Unique Mission in Life

This is the ninth installment from Suggestions from a Searcher.

A.  Mission in life — What is your (unique) reason for being?

“ Average performers are goal-driven. 

 Peak performers are mission-driven.”

“The primary reason we don’t achieve our goals is that we don’t love them enough.”

Susan Woodring, quoted above, identifies it as a problem that we not love our goals enough.  One obvious solution would be to simply do what you love to do!  There is something to be said for following your passions in life.  In fact, I believe that your worthwhile positive passions were planted in you by God!  However, as we live our lives we take on certain responsibilities and encounter various challenges that might cause us to follow a different path than what we intended.  That too can be the Lord guiding our footsteps.  The beloved movie, “It’s A Wonderful Life,” starring Jimmy Stewart, makes that point.  “In his heart a man plans his course but the Lord determines his steps.”   Proverbs 16: 9

I am recommending that you consciously allow the Lord to guide your steps.  Everything we have been working on in this book so far is about how you discover God’s purpose for your life — your mission.  The goals of this workbook are to help you understand how you fit into God’s sovereign plan. He has uniquely equipped you with certain gifts, such as talents and opportunities. Use those gifts in serving Him where you are.  But having said that, I must caution you that there will be unplanned problems that may re-define the mission you earlier perceived to be your part in accomplishing God’s sovereign (big picture) plan.  Therefore, be flexible.  Let the Lord use you as His instrument.  Do not try to manipulate Him to be your tool for accomplishing your own plan.

I find myself repeating myself as I go along and I think I know why.  It is because these concepts, these truths, are inter-related.  Which comes first, the chicken or the egg?  Do you first identify your areas of giftedness or first recognize God’s purpose in your circumstances?  I do not have a totally clear or satisfactory approach, but let me suggest this:

               Spend time with God to discover your gifts.

Use your gifts in following His plan.

                       Trust in Him when things don’t go as you want.

                            Remember Who is in charge. (Hint: It’s not you!)

                                                      Recognize that challenges are part of life.

Dr.Blackaby offers the following advice to people who wonder about what God wants them to do:  “Look around and notice where God is at work; then jump in.”  The potential disciple who hesitated to respond to the call to immediately come and follow Jesus apparently failed to recognize that God was at work in Jesus.  He was awaiting the coming of the Messiah but the Messiah was already present and inviting him to join in the work of the Kingdom of God.

Mission statements are popular devices in the business world today.  In the secular use of mission statements, God is often not an acknowledged factor.  In our law firm mission statement, we tried to incorporate our shared belief that God has called us to serve Him as lawyers who see our work as a ministry.  Then we stated what that work consists of for us:  advocacy, counseling and peacemaking. 

EXERCISE SEVEN:

 This next exercise is intended to help you come up with a mission plan for this stage of your life at least.  Considering your past success factors, current interests, life-long passions, God-given talents, and core values, think about and pray about these three important questions:

 1)  What are you going to do?

 2)  Who are you doing it for?

 3)  Why?

           Write your own personal mission statement, incorporating your answers to the three questions above.   Your mission will perhaps change at various stages of life.  Think about where you are now.  What is your present mission?  Why did God put you where you are right now?  Where do you see God at work around you in your current circumstances?