Purpose in the Pause: Part 4 (Vocation)

This past September I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to get back in the local church with an interim youth ministry position. It’s been great getting back into the rhythm of ministry and doing what I love. The picture above is just a glimpse of the awesome crew I get to hang out with!

If you have been following my blog, you know I’ve been sharing my reflections of finding “Purpose in the Pause” as it relates to my story. So far I have offered my perspective as it relates to self-care, marriage, and family. This is the final piece of the series.

A few years ago I was given an opportunity to participate in a cohort through a partnership between the North GA Conference of the UMC-YMI program and the Youth Cartel. To put it briefly, the Youth Ministry Coaching Program was a year-long program in which myself and a small group of other youth ministers met every other month for two-day retreats where we had rich discussions, youth ministry and leadership training, customized problem solving, personal sharing, one-on-one coaching, spiritual direction, and other components. It was one of the most formative experiences of my life and I highly recommend it to other ministry leaders.

However, if I had to highlight the most useful resource I received through the experience it was the creation of my PERSONAL VOCATIONAL VALUES. I couldn’t predict how these values would become the guiding principals for my life and career endeavors.

The following is what I created:

Family comes first. By being the kind of son, husband & parent, that God wants me to be, I am a role model of Christian faith within my family and to others.
I want to be part of God’s redemptive work in the world. When I see injustice, rather than ignore it, I want to act to bring about change for the wholeness of humanity.
Being a life-long learner is a critical key to growth. I want to continually think outside the box to leave space for new ideas to emerge.
I need a work environment that embraces collaboration and mutuality. True leadership comes from a place of humility and respect where one aspires to be part of a team.
Everyone’s best self is unique. Being ordinary is resisting becoming your best self. As life moves forward circumstances change, and I trust God can use my circumstances to get me to the place where He wants me to be.
Rest and balance are essential to wholeness and sustainability. By factoring margin into my daily schedule, I can maintain personal health physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Now, even though many of my values are tied to a ministry context, the process is applicable to any vocation in helping you understand what you value most. That being said, I want to challenge you in creating some “PVVs” for yourself.

Here are some steps you can take to get the creative juices flowing:

Identify key words that reflect things that you value. Write those words down on a sheet of paper and then draw connections to words that are similar.
Choose five to seven key words/phrases based on what you value most. Be sure to have a well-rounded set of values that represent you as a person.
Begin crafting a value statement. Don’t let it some lofty idea, be sure it has some teeth!
Add clarity to your value statement. Add a sentence of two to add some clarity to your value as it relates to you and your ideal work environment.
Let someone look over your values. This person(s) role is not to overhaul what you’ve created, rather to ask clarifying questions to help you make your values more concise.

These PVV’s represent you. So, use them as a tool as you discern what you want to do in life. Give them to your employer to give he/she a better sense of how you want to function in your work environment. Bring them to your next interview to help you understand if the job is the right fit. Show them to your spouse as a way to show them how they might support you in your relationship.

Values carry importance, but they also reflect worth. Hold them to a high standard and don’t sacrifice the integrity of what the represent.