One of the most common questions i hear peers ask is, "What am I going do with my life?" We have so many different opportunities and options to pursue whatever we want. But how do you really pick a vocation and path that's right for you? After a few months into a job i kinda jus get really tired of it. How can i find something that I want to stick to? Sometimes i get so concerned with "What do I want to do?" that i completely forget to ask, "What is God's will for me?" Two quick lessons i learned is
1) It's okay to not have everything figured out, things will be alright 2) Things don't always go the way you expect, but God is still sovereign.
Out of all the jobs and ways of making money in the world, what's the most efficient? I'm sure there's gotta be something creative that fits me just right. Speaking of money, i really need to make better decisions with how to manage money. The older i get, the more I see how difficult it is to manage money. It's easy to spend and so hard to invest and save. And i can't jus keep turning to my parents for help. I need to start self-motivating myself to accomplish handling responsibilities on my own. ive ran and avoided adulthood for as long as possible, but guess it's time to start facing it head on.
In terms of vocation, maybe we're not meant to be stuck doing just one career path. Some will say follow your passion, others will say follow the money. I say, follow God. I noticed following God usually means the more challenging path that isn't so straight forward. And even more importantly then where we're going, we ought to ask, "Who do I want to become?" The journey and who we are in the process may actually be more important then just getting to a certain destination.
In America we're given the luxury and freedom to choose what we would want to do with our life. Compared to the past, most people would grow up just having to become farmers. I've been a little stuck with finding exactly what I want to do. I find myself in the middle of a crossroad, lol or more like treading water in a dark scary ocean. I know i'm not the only one with irrational fears of sharks, esp when ur in a swimming pool lol. How do you harmonize serving and doing ministry for God's kingdom and at the same time, making a living to survive?
I noticed that i really want to pursue a job that feels fulfilling, and that actually makes a difference in helping people grow or learn. If it's stressful and not fulfilling, the pay better be hella good lol. I also like working with kids because their laughter is a joy. There's something about kids that just make me come alive. Perhaps it's because i'm still childish and immachur.
For a long time I thought i was supposed to be a pastor, and I believe that's still true. However, I learned that a "pastor" isn't just the guy who preaches on Sunday morning. Rather a "pastor" can be a shepherd who cares for people and proclaims the gospel. So really, just because you're trained to do ministry, it doesn't mean you need to work at a church. In fact, i believe Christians can do ministry in the everyday workplace. Ministry is not bound to bible studies and church outreaches. Ministry can really be defined as compassion. The love of God and the compassion for others is what really brings about change and transformation. All that was completely off topic.
I'm applying to more grad school after 20yrs of education. -_- It's to pursue a Marriage and Family Therapy degree. It's actually called Master of Science in Counseling Psychology, which sounds really weird lol. I got an interview next week, so hopefully i get accepted. I guess it'll help train and license me to become a better counselor. In terms of counseling, I strongly believe that Christian therapist need to integrate both Theology and Psychology. But that's an entirely different topic.
I've been playing a few games of chess everyday against a really smart friend. He's one of those guys that just seems so intimidating and impressive because he's speech, knowledge and IQ are on a different level. Surprisingly I haven't been able to beat him in chess. I thought i pretty much mastered that strategy game. Last night i was so close to winning, like super close. But then i made a stupid stupid decision and ended up losing. The reason I bring this up is because I believe chess relates to how we go about making decisions.
For big important decisions, Time is a big factor. When there's a clock and time limit, we're much more prone to make foolish rash decisions. The reason time is important in making decisions is because it gives us a moment to analyze and weigh the pros and cons of all our options. In the decision making processes, I was taught to 1) Seek God's word, will and way, 2) Seek wise counsel, 3) Meditation through prayer and contemplation.
Sometimes God doesn't give us the exact details of his future plans. In fact that's kinda rare. But we get a better vision of his plans when we draw close to him. Sometimes the time of not knowing, is where God may want us. Because in that time, he is after our heart, he calls us towards deeper relationship with him, and challenges us to grow in faith/ trust / dependency on him. However, eventually we need to take a cut off turn and make our best God honoring decision even if we don't know if it's God's perfect will.
There's a verse in Romans 12:2 that says something like, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is, his good, pleasing and perfect will." I read that verse every time before i start my car. i keep pondering what it really means to "renew your mind." I think it has something to do with constantly refreshing our thoughts and desires towards God's will.
We've all made bad decisions, and sometimes it's best to learn from it, let it go and just move on. Stop looking back and look forward. The reason I get paralyzed when trying to make decisions is because I've often made horrible ones. And consequences to bad decisions can be severe. Sometimes the fear of making a wrong choice disables us from making any decision. My mom likes to watch the Suze Orman show, who's a finical advisor. She always signs off saying, "And folks, Remember.. People first, then money, then things." And if I could add to it, i would say God first. But i think she's right, that although decisions with money can be costly, making bad decisions with relationships is far more worse.
The concept of morality also comes into play with decisions because ethically we usually know right from wrong, and still often choose to do the wrong. When we're about to make a sinful choice, we ought to learn to take a moment to renew/ refresh our mind and align our desires with God's will.
Perhaps the toughest question and decision to make is, "Where do you want to go eat?" "i dunno, you choose."
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