By Ken Smitherman, President ACSI (retired 2009)
The challenges of parenting and family life in this twenty-first century can be overwhelming at times because we allow our culture to dictate our pace and lifestyle. How then can we pursue and attain a lifestyle that truly honors Christ, appropriately engages our children, and brings a genuine sense of joy?
In a new book, Living on Purpose (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2002), Christine and Tom Sine challenge their readers "to create a way of life that really takes on some of the authentic characteristics of the culture of God’s kingdom."
“The greatest sin of busyness is how it disrupts our capacity to live on purpose.” Les Parrott, PhD, Center for Relationship Development, Seattle Pacific University
I share with you one of the tools they recommend to support this pursuit of the culture of God’s kingdom. They offer an outline or framework upon which to develop a set of goals. They suggest the following:
- Setting Goals for Your Spiritual Journey We only discover who we are and who God calls us to be in that larger story as we learn to dwell deeply in the God revealed in Jesus Christ. Cultivate the inner life through Scripture study and meditation, contemplation, silence, intercession, praise, and thanksgiving. It is important that we protect our time alone with God in prayer and Scripture study. It is important to find a place to get away from other distractions and be fully focused on God. We must set goals to protect weekly worship as well as time for small support groups.
- Setting Goals for Your Kingdom Vocation Jesus understood that it wasn’t enough to be committed to God. Our faith also requires us to be committed to the kingdom purposes of God. Discover an intentional way to seek to advance God’s kingdom in the workplace or community, or through home and family. This might effectively be done by involving your kids in regular outreach to some of the forgotten people in your community or by opening your home to foster children or international students.
- Setting Goals for Your Intellectual Disciplines It is helpful to understand both faith and the world in which God has planted us. We urge all Christians to develop a regular reading discipline. Such reading should include periodicals—a news magazine that covers the international scene and a good Christian magazine—and books, both fiction and nonfiction on serious faith-related topics. An alternative goal for people of all ages is to go back to school to prepare for God’s call on their lives, or take courses simply to grow in understanding of faith and culture.
- Setting Goals for Your Relationships Jesus’ life revolved more around relationships, particularly with His disciples, than around organizations. In addition to teaching and mentoring them, Jesus simply enjoyed time with His friends around food, wedding parties, and festivals. It is important to set aside time for important relationships. Perhaps God is even calling you to mentor a young person in your church or encouraging you to create some new kingdom celebrations in your home.
- Setting Goals for Your Creative Disciplines How do we use our creative gifts? This can be an opportunity to create a range of new ways to enthusiastically put our faith into practice seven days a week. The challenge is to use our creativity to bring our faith into every part of our lives, including how we celebrate life. This can be done by using your creative gifts in the arts, hospitality, and gardening in ways that reflect the purposes and celebration of God’s kingdom.
- Setting Goals for Your Physical Disciplines Too often our sicknesses are not simply the inevitable but rather the consequence of lifestyle choices that have been made. Give attention to developing a healthy family diet and engaging in regular exercise. Such goals should be set in light of your sense of God’s call on your life.
- Setting Goals for the Use of Your Time and Money We are called not only to be whole-life disciples but whole-life stewards as well. The challenge is to set some new goals for how to steward your time and money that more genuinely reflect the values of the kingdom rather than the seductions of our culture. Prayerfully consider trying to free up more time or money for the work of the kingdom.
I urge you to consider getting this book and, with your family, to pursue enthusiastically the very best that God desires for your life—indeed, to focus on living on purpose.
Purposeful Living 34.7