In a previous post we discussed the importance of knowing and understanding your purpose as the first step toward pursuing a life of excellence. In the book Reset, David Murray discusses this idea of purpose and contrasts the idea of the "Well-planned life" - creating a single, overarching purpose statement with the idea of creating specific purpose statements in different spheres of your life. By focusing on the later and periodically updating our purpose statements, we are able to avoid making a purpose statement that is too vague to be of any meaningful significance in our lives. And it gives us a very sharp-focused target for us to pursue.
In later posts I will elaborate more on a model to understanding the spheres of your life. But for the time being let's use the 4 spheres of spiritual, personal, relational, vocational. Here are some examples of purpose statements that I have developed in my 4 spheres:
Spiritual
- To live fully present in this world but motivated by God and his kingdom.
- To defeat pride and cultivate humility
- To routinely engage in Christian disciplines and Christian fellowship.
Personal
- To be strong in body and mind capable of managing and engaging in the various situations of life I find myself.
- To be broadly knowledgeable able to understand and engage in the world around me.
- To live in a healthy manner
- To live with quite gravitas
Relational
- To love my wife with Christ-like affection and devotion (Ephesians 5:22-33)
- To be present and engaged in the lives of my kids
- To teach my kids to love God and a proper ordering of life. (Deuteronomy 6:4)
- To prepare my kids to be capable, engaged, and well-rounded citizens in the community in which they live (Jeremiah 29)
Vocational
- To be a valuable employee that works without complaint
- To be a clinically competent and exemplary physician.
- To view and treat my patients as individuals who embody the Imago Dei
So, as you think through purpose, hopefully this list will inspire you and help you create your own lists of purpose statements. Don't be afraid to change and update the list. And as you put together the list of statements that represent your purpose in the spiritual, personal, relational, and vocational spheres of life, you may start seeing a theme emerge that becomes an overarching purpose for life.
So what are your purpose statements? Share in the comments!
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