We Americans have heard it said by many people that those people made whatever selfish decision they made because they wanted to “find” themselves. Wouldn’t it be great if people could find themselves without making poor, selfish, or regrettable choices? At the beginning of the month I posted some basic questions for self-discovery, questions that help us answer that age-old question “Who am I?” I got some positive feedback from that blog, so I decided to present some follow-up questions to get us all thinking about who we are so that we don’t “find ourselves” in a big fat mess later on in life.
1. If I had all the money and resources I could ever need, what would I spend my time, money, and effort doing?
2. What population of people do I have a knack for attracting?
3. What population of people do I want to attract?
4. Do I enjoy being with children, teenagers, young adults, middle-aged adults, the elderly, or special needs
people?
5. What is my passion?
6. If I were to serve in a branch of the military, which would it be? Why? What job would I want to have?
7. What 5 things keep me from achieving my goals?
8. What 5 things helped me achieve my goals in the past?
9. What are the spiritual gifts that God has blessed me with?
10. What talents has God given me (remember that talents do not have to be fine arts like singing, drawing, dancing, or acting; talents can include being able to understand how and why things work, teaching, cooking, making things grow, encouraging others, setting and meeting goals, coaching others, etc…)?
11. What is attractive to me about my church?
12. What do I love about my closest friends?
13. What types of qualities do I tend to bring out in others?
14. Do I tend to follow the rules or break them?
15. Who do I respect? Why? What qualities do they have that I respect?
16. Is there anyone I do not respect? Why? What qualities do they have that I disrespect?
17. Do I control my emotions, or do my emotions control me?
18. What areas of my life would I like to improve?
19. What areas of my life am I satisfied with?
20. Am I willing to ask for help to change my life for the better?
These are great questions to ask to help us get better acquainted with ourselves. Another resource for us is the DISC inventory, which helps us understand more about our personality. Crown Financial Ministries offers a free version of the DISC on their website. Just click on “Find out now” which is right underneath “What's your Crown Money Map Personality I.D.?” and take the short (5-10 minutes) personality inventory. Make sure to read the instructions before taking the inventory. Good luck, and happy self-discovering!
Showing posts with label purpose. Show all posts
Showing posts with label purpose. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
Who Am I?
It’s amazing, but this most basic question is one that so many of us ask but so few of us know how to answer. Before you throw away your current life in search of the answer, take some time to do some self-discovery. You might find you already like who you are!
1. What do I like?
2. What do I NOT like?
3. What are my values?
4. What do each of the words I used to describe my values mean to me?
5. How would I describe my reputation?
6. What kind of reputation do I want to have?
7. Who do I want to BE?
8. What do I want to DO?
9. What do I want to HAVE?
10. What other goals do I have?
11. What are 15 things I want to accomplish before I die?
12. How do I want people to describe my life on my 80th birthday?
13. What is my proudest moment?
14. What moment in my life am I least proud of?
15. What are my top 5 strengths?
16. What are my top 5 weaknesses?
These are just a few questions to get you thinking about that most basic question we all ask. Schedule 30 minutes into your planner this week and begin answering these questions. This could be one of the most important exercises you will ever do, because this exercise will help you find your identity and your purpose!
1. What do I like?
2. What do I NOT like?
3. What are my values?
4. What do each of the words I used to describe my values mean to me?
5. How would I describe my reputation?
6. What kind of reputation do I want to have?
7. Who do I want to BE?
8. What do I want to DO?
9. What do I want to HAVE?
10. What other goals do I have?
11. What are 15 things I want to accomplish before I die?
12. How do I want people to describe my life on my 80th birthday?
13. What is my proudest moment?
14. What moment in my life am I least proud of?
15. What are my top 5 strengths?
16. What are my top 5 weaknesses?
These are just a few questions to get you thinking about that most basic question we all ask. Schedule 30 minutes into your planner this week and begin answering these questions. This could be one of the most important exercises you will ever do, because this exercise will help you find your identity and your purpose!
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Is Suffering Always Bad?
I don’t think so. Suffering is bad when we get nothing from it, when we learn nothing from it, and when we are unable to use our suffering for our benefit or the benefit of others. But suffering that leads to God is actually GOOD suffering.
I can hear the sneers now. Really? You really think that suffering can be good? My answer to that is…absolutely!
A family was torn apart by infidelity. The track that the parents in this family was on was not one that led to God. It led to selfishness and greed. When the divorce was final, one parent decided that seeking God was the thing to do. The children were then raised in a much more godly environment, which led to much more godly marriages for them and lives full of the Holy Spirit.
Not enough suffering there? Okay, a single lady LONGS for a godly marriage. While still single, her focus is on God and knowing Him more intimately. She has served the Lord by educating and loving the children of missionaries in Africa, and by leading His people to more healthy and fulfilling lives here in America. Does she suffer? Every day. Is her suffering in vain? Absolutely not! Her relationship with God is one that most people only wish they could imagine!
A young couple faced the unthinkable. After being married only two years, cancer struck the husband. He also had a stroke due to the type of cancer he had and was forced to push himself through over a year of rehabilitation just to be able to speak and to walk. Another side effect of his cancer left them without the ability to have children. This suffering was and still is tremendous for both of them. Is it necessarily bad? Well, the couple has begun the process of adopting children, and each of them has a stronger relationship with God due to what He has brought them through. The husband is able to share his testimony in his blog. Their friends and family have gathered around them in a way they never would have if this family had not faced such hardship.
Has all this suffering been in vain? I don’t think so. God is redeeming each of these situations and is using them for His glory. Each of these situations is real, and each person has found hope and purpose in their situation as they have also sought God. When we understand that the purpose of life is to bring glory to God, we find that suffering has a real purpose, and it is not always bad.
For more on finding purpose beyond your pain, go to http://purposebeyondpain.wordpress.com/ to read my friend, psychiatrist David Henderson’s, blog and book Finding Purpose Beyond Our Pain.
I can hear the sneers now. Really? You really think that suffering can be good? My answer to that is…absolutely!
A family was torn apart by infidelity. The track that the parents in this family was on was not one that led to God. It led to selfishness and greed. When the divorce was final, one parent decided that seeking God was the thing to do. The children were then raised in a much more godly environment, which led to much more godly marriages for them and lives full of the Holy Spirit.
Not enough suffering there? Okay, a single lady LONGS for a godly marriage. While still single, her focus is on God and knowing Him more intimately. She has served the Lord by educating and loving the children of missionaries in Africa, and by leading His people to more healthy and fulfilling lives here in America. Does she suffer? Every day. Is her suffering in vain? Absolutely not! Her relationship with God is one that most people only wish they could imagine!
A young couple faced the unthinkable. After being married only two years, cancer struck the husband. He also had a stroke due to the type of cancer he had and was forced to push himself through over a year of rehabilitation just to be able to speak and to walk. Another side effect of his cancer left them without the ability to have children. This suffering was and still is tremendous for both of them. Is it necessarily bad? Well, the couple has begun the process of adopting children, and each of them has a stronger relationship with God due to what He has brought them through. The husband is able to share his testimony in his blog. Their friends and family have gathered around them in a way they never would have if this family had not faced such hardship.
Has all this suffering been in vain? I don’t think so. God is redeeming each of these situations and is using them for His glory. Each of these situations is real, and each person has found hope and purpose in their situation as they have also sought God. When we understand that the purpose of life is to bring glory to God, we find that suffering has a real purpose, and it is not always bad.
For more on finding purpose beyond your pain, go to http://purposebeyondpain.wordpress.com/ to read my friend, psychiatrist David Henderson’s, blog and book Finding Purpose Beyond Our Pain.
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