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When you know your personal mission statement it helps you identify how God has created you to contribute to the world. Moreover, it provides peace around your purpose and gives you clarity and confidence to make a difference in the right way, and in the right places.
Hi friend, welcome to my new podcast series called Connect the Dots with Coach Karyn. Here we will walk through what it takes to create a personal mission statement in order to help you live out your purpose with more clarity and peace.
The truth is that many of us wrestle with foundational questions about our existence. Like: What is my purpose? What am I here for? Why did God create me? How does he want to use me? It’s natural for us to contemplate these questions because the answer is what motors our lives. And when we don’t have that answer we can feel stuck, aimless, inadequate and sometimes a tad irresponsible with the gifts God has given us.
As a Christian these questions can be born from what we know in the Bible. But even non-believers have this innate pull toward purpose and meaning. Everyone does. I believe that’s because our God is a God of purpose. Scripture says:
• Colossians 1:16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.
• Jeremiah 32:19 great are your purposes and mighty are your deeds.
• And in Psalm 33:11 the Bible says, But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.
God is a God who creates with a purpose. Not only are there large scale purposes that God orchestrates, but he has laid a unique way for each of us to be part of that purpose. We find this in Ephesians 2:10 that says, we are God’s Masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. God makes us on purpose, with a purpose and for a purpose.
However, figuring out your God-given mission this side of heaven can be frustrating. But, here’s the thing, when you do;
• It gives you direction and peace,
• it helps you know when to say yes and when to say no,
• and it keeps you effective and fulfilled.
Best of all, when you create a mission statement with God, it becomes even more powerful. You’ll not only know how you’re meant to live out your life, but you’ll have the force of the Holy Spirit behind you to fulfill the works that God prepared in advance for you.
God already knows your mission, and wants to give you the peace that comes along with knowing it yourself. So, if you’ve ever wondered what you’re here for, or looking to discover how to live out the meaning in your life, you’re in the right place.
This series will take on a train and coach format. It will be different from my Witness and Ponder series because I will be training and coaching someone in real-time. I invited a friend to be coached through this process in the hopes that by hearing her journey it will help lead you to your own conclusions, or at least better direction and clarity. You’ll get a front row seat to witness the process that takes her through a resource that I’ve created called Connect the Dots.
Connect the dots: 5 Thoughtful Steps to Your Own Personal Mission Statement is an online video training that is a result of my own long and arduous journey to discover my mission. It took me decades of stumbling through one assessment after another. Don’t get me wrong, each assessment was really valuable and brought wonderful insight, but what I ended up with was fragments of information that were really difficult to piece together.
It was, in fact, connecting these pieces that was actually my breakthrough, because it led me to create a succinct mission statement that pulled together what I do well, who my heart is inclined to serve, and what my values, passion and motivation are. These are the nuts and bolts of a mission statement. In only a handful of steps I not only ended up with my personal mission statement, but I discovered how to stay filled and fulfilled as I live it out.
Whether you’re just starting out on your life’s journey, or in the midst of it, you can gain clarity and peace by inviting God to walk you through this experience. By listening to the podcast alone, you’ll be able to see how God works through each of the steps, and you may even be able to discover your mission statement without using the training. That would be great! However, if you’re like I was all those years ago, feeling overwhelmed and stumped, just know that Connect the Dots could be just the resource you need to get you to the answers you seek.
Nevertheless, while Connect the Dots can be experienced independently, it is really designed to be experienced with a coach in order to achieve the best experience. Because while you’re seeking your mission, your coach has already discovered theirs. And part of theirs is to walk beside you as you find yours. That’s what coaches do – ICF certified coaches are trained in a framework to encourage, support and hold you accountable to what you want most in life.
Whatever way you arrive at your mission statement, my biggest hope and prayer is that you arrive with God having led you to your answers. Proverbs 19:21 says, Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.
God’s purpose prevailed in converting what I created years ago for myself, into something for others. Creating Connect the Dots was truly an act of obedience fringed with the excitement of a beggar telling other beggars where to find bread. So, upfront I want you to know that this experience is not dependent on you purchasing the resource, or finding a coach, all you really need is God – lean into Him – Pray Psalm 57:2 that says, “I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.” And then be obedient to his direction.
This series is a result of repeated nudges from God to share what it could look like to unearth the promise he has for you and in you, through someone else. But, this was easier said than done. In order to do this, I needed a volunteer who would rescind the sacred coaching confidentiality and bare their soul before a listening podcast world, so that you could witness God in action in their life. If you haven’t already realized…this is a big deal! So, I prayed for months for God to direct me to who he had in mind. He eventually led me to my friend, Julie. I felt awkward and uncomfortable asking her to do just what I told you, but in God-fashion, it was no coincidence that he had already been working on her heart in those same months. This convinced me that God was setting this up for someone who would be listening – maybe that someone is you – maybe he wants you to know that he sees you and hears you.
Well, Julie graciously said yes and we both took this brave, obedient step. So, we’d like nothing more for you to join us on this unscripted adventure to the destination of her mission statement. I know God will show up, because I know he wants to reveal to you and to Julie the unique mission he has laid on your lives.
Before Julie joins us in our next episode for step one, let’s take a minute to consider the role that meaning and purpose play in our lives. Meaning is critical, without it we whither. Texas A& M University researchers have discovered that knowing oneself is one of the most important predictors of meaning in life. Your identity plays a huge role in determining your purpose. To live purposefully requires self-reflection and self-knowledge.
Psychologist Eric Erickson says that someone who has a solid grasp of their identity, knows their core beliefs, values and life goals and how their groups and community has shaped them. They are able to answer the questions; what kind of person am I? and what kind of a person do I want to be? He says identity isn’t static and that we need to revisit these questions at every stage of our life.
As Christians our identity is centered in Christ so we know what kind of person we want to be, right? But it was that other question that gave me fits…I didn’t know what kind of a person I was until I pulled all my self-exploration pieces together.
Proverbs 20:5 says, the purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out. I needed a whole lotta help from God in this “drawing out”. And no surprise - he showed up! This internal journey yielded a clear path for me, it relieved me from the shoulds of others, it empowered me to say no, and to this day it keeps me in step with the Holy Spirit. There was a fulfillment that brought the courage I needed to live out my mission. And, there is the constant assurance of the Holy Spirit as I continue to live my life out through it.
Let’s take a minute to clarify the difference between purpose, vision and mission, okay?
1. Purpose is your why. It’s the why that is guided by your deeply-held core values and beliefs.
2. Vision is your what. Vision is what you hope for in relation to GOD’S KINGDOM ON EARTH.
3. Mission is your how. Mission is how you plan on creating what you hope for. Mission focuses you and unlocks strategy to achieve the outcome that your values and beliefs drive.
Combined: purpose, vision and mission are what create your impact, contribution and investment in the world. It’s your sense of significance that brings the meaning you need to live a healthy, fulfilled life.
Purpose is at our core, the engine of our life. As Christians the why that is guided by our deeply-held core values and beliefs brings us to one place. Glorifying God. Our purpose is a response to God for who he is, and what he’s done to redeem us. A life that glorifies God is an immersion in the fruit of the spirit, and in Jesus’ name. Every Christian has this same overarching purpose.
Speaking of the disciples in John 17:10 Jesus says in his prayer to God, 10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them.
He continues in verse 20 speaking about US now to the Father. “My prayer is not for them alone, (meaning the disciples). I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
I love, love this scripture! Our purpose is to glorify God with the glory that Jesus has given us. When this happens the world knows that God sent Jesus. When we create unity we glorify God, when we look like Christ in the world, we glorify God. In that chapter Jesus asks God to glorify him so that he can glorify God. We can’t glorify God, or live out our purpose without God’s help. And, friend, I don’t know about you, but that is really comforting to me!
While our purpose may sound simple, it certainly is not easy! I don’t have to tell you that clothing yourself in the attributes of Christ on a daily basis is a struggle. But, on top of that, when you don’t know how you’re specifically meant to glorify God, it can get discouraging. That’s why knowing your personal mission statement is so important. It can reveal how you were made to glorify God.
Once you know your mission, know that it is unique to YOU. That God’s Spirit in YOU is working specifically to use your authentic self to make a difference in this world. Knowing your True Self is critical to this journey because it helps you to choose paths that best align with your gifts, skills, values and passion. Connect the Dots provides a matrix that provides links to free assessments that will help you uncover these.
Keeping that in mind, I want to go back to the research from Texas A & M for a moment because I found a piece of it really interesting. It’s no surprise that they discovered that being reminded of your authentic self makes life feel more meaningful. However, they identified that our culturally shared sources of meaning are dwindling. So, people have to turn inward to know how best to lead their life.
As much as Connect the Dots is an exploration in knowing yourself, I can’t express enough that this is not a one-sided exploration. As much as we discover who we are, we must continuously discover who God is. Knowing Him, helps us know ourselves, because we are made in his image and for his purposes. Personally, I feel empty when I think about exploring purpose without God.
Fortunately, we won’t be doing that. This podcast is an organic journey with Father, Son and Holy Spirit into who Julie is, and how she was made to serve others, glorify God and be fulfilled.
Let’s talk format for a minute. Once we begin next week with step one, you will be listening to a coaching session that is also a training session. By industry standard a coach does not give advice; we ask questions and oversee the process. If a coach is giving you advice what you may actually be experiencing is mentoring – there’s nothing the matter with mentoring, but it is not what the industry considers coaching. I want you to know the difference because in addition to coaching, I will be training Julie which involves explaining aspects of the topics we’ll be discussing. It’s in these spaces that I hope you can also glean additional benefits.
I’m excited to welcome Julie in our next episode, and want to reiterate that none of the episodes are staged. We are being carried by the Holy Spirit who we invite into the process via prayer. My goal for today was to
1. clarify the difference between purpose, vision and mission
2. introduce Julie and the new train and coach podcast format
3. Explain that we’ll be walking through 5 steps of a resource called Connect the Dots.
4. And to share the genesis of this course which I created to spare you the long, winding, and sometimes confusing road to figure out how you were meant to live out your life in Christ.
Lastly, I wanted you to know that God is the one who has called you here. What unfolds in each episode is for you. I am convinced of this because, as I said, months before I even asked Julie to consider this, God was working in her heart in the same way. This was set up before either of us knew it! We are being obedient because we also believe He wants you to know how to live out your mission. He wants you to love well and glorify him and He knows you want the same.
*****
Thanks for tuning in friend. I hope you’re excited to jump in with Julie and I next week as her story unfolds in STEP ONE. I’ve provided details about Connect the dots in the show notes as well as a discount code if you’re interested in having a parallel experience as we walk through it. I hope you choose to experience this with a friend or two – it’s really a great way to gain even more insight and affirmations. I’m praying God brings you to the revelations you need to glorify him in the ways that only you can. Until next week, live kind days and glorify God.