What I’m learning is that you have to stop doing a whole lot of things to learn what it is that you really love, who it is you really are. What does matter is, does it feel congruent with how God made me and called me?
Shauna Niequist
Take yourself back ten years in time. Can you remember where you were and what you were doing ten years ago?
Ten years ago, my son had just graduated high school and my daughter had completed her first year at uni. I was travelling to Cambodia regularly to train teachers and had published one book and had another underway.
My husband was transitioning from running a large business to full-time photographer. We had begun travelling more regularly and felt called to become more involved in things around the world.
Ten years later, my son is married and living in London, my daughter finished uni and moved to Sydney and returned just this year. I’ve published more books and have written a few more. My husband is well-established in his career as a photographer and has published several books.
I spent last Sunday afternoon contemplating just what it is that I need to do in the next year, and the next decade, of my life.
What you were doing ten years ago is probably radically different to what you are doing now. Think about all of the significant things that have happened in your life over that time.
The things that come to mind will evoke a wide spectrum of emotions and make you laugh or cry or shake your head. What you immediately identify will probably be the things that are most important in your life.
I found that in doing our planning for the next year and beyond caused me to think about not just what I want to do, but also to think about why I am doing what I do.
The end of a decade is a great time to reflect on how God made us and what He has called us to do.
Why is a more impacting question than what or how. If we skip the why, we miss an essential part of the equation of life. That’s often why we find people uninspired in jobs they hate or in relationships they feel trapped in.
Why do you do what you do? What is your purpose? What are your values?
In Simon Sinek’s book, Find Your Why, he suggests constructing why statements using this basic structure:
To ______________(Contribution) so that _________________(Impact).
Our why is about what we give to our family, our friends, our work, our community, our world. The impact is about the effect our contribution has on others.
Simon Sinek, author of Start with Why, expresses his WHY thus:
To inspire people to do the things that inspire them so that, together, we can change our world.
I’ve been working on articulating my whys and find it much easier to explain what I do and how I do it. Working out my whys is a deeper process. I thought I knew them, but I’m taking some time at the end of this decade to reflect. I’ve found that articulating my whys refreshes or renews our passion and connects me to my ultimate why. Connects me back to God.
In working out my why, I’m taking time to reflect on significant memories, defining moments, and the connections between them.
I’m taking time to contemplate standout moments of the past and retrieve them one by one and turn them into signposts for the me I want to be and the me I believe God wants me to be.
Compare ten-years-old you and who you are now, then imagine the person you will be in ten years.
Take some time to meditate and pray this last month of the decade and consider what it is that drives your why.
What a great post! Asking yourself “why” and using this reflection to look for the signposts of where God wants to take you. I’ve certainly been doing some “why” questions recently. Thanks for this timely reminder, Elaine Xx
Hi Wendy, why is a powerful question. I hope you have a beautiful Christmas season and that the New Year will bring clarity and purpose. 😊
Ten years ago my parenting chapter was finished, and I was packing to move from the place I thought God had planted me. The new life I expected to have looked nothing like where I am now. Both my sons came back briefly, broken by the world, to hide with us in our no-kids home until they found their feet again. I’ve tried my hand at two careers and earned a degree. Two months ago, as I took on my third school chaplaincy, God said it had taken 9 1/2 years to get me ready. Ten years ago, I grieved for my children. Now I have a thousand to pray for. And God continues to tell me to ‘extend my tent pegs’…
Wow! That’s a powerful testimony of God’s leading in your life even when things may have been challenging. A thousand children to pray for! Sounds like a book title to me! 😊🙏
I’ve only just realised that we not only have a new year bearing down on us, but a new decade as well. The last ten years have gone so quickly!
I had been thinking about my what for next year (and perhaps beyond), but hadn’t stopped to consider my why. Thank you for the prompt.
It’s been quite challenging for me to work this process and it’s ongoing.
Have a wonderful Christmas with your family and a blessed New Year (decade) 😊
Hi Elaine, Thanks for sharing your challenging post (and my apologies for chiming in late).
Ten years ago I was a pre-published writer who had finaled in contests in the US and collected rejection letters. I had written two books and was about to start writing book #3 (those books were all published in 2014).
I was also, unknowingly, on the path to my current day job. Although, had someone told me in 2009 the job description for my future job, I would have laughed and told them they were crazy, lol. 😊
I’m excited to start a new decade and explore new opportunities. One thing I have learned in the last ten years is that the real joy in writing is in the journey (especially the friendships I have made in the writing world) rather than in the big ‘achievements’ measured by worldly standards.
You are absolutely right about friendships. Friends I’ve made over the last ten years of my writing journey are the treasures and reward of this life.
The adventure of life and faith is not knowing what’s coming next, but to have friends alongside you for the journey is precious.
😊❤️