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Latest Post
- What’s your vision?
I have a list of things I want to do this year:
- make a movie
- write a book
- record an album
- host a retreat
- lower my A1C
- raise my funding
- have an art show
- travel to India
- share my faith
- be encouraged in my own
I listed these as the year began, but then life happened. I had to do my taxes, write a will, rebuild my website, battle a cold… you know how it goes.
That’s when I saw my friend Ann McKitrick post a note on Facebook that she and my cousin Joan Moody were hosting a “vision board” retreat. What’s a vision board, I wondered?
I leaned in to learn more. Ann said it was “really just a visual representation of your goals and your values and your intentions for the upcoming year.”
She sent me some worksheets with some specific questions for me to answer about how satisfied I am, what brings me joy, 20 things I want to do, want to be, want to have, and love to do. I filled out my answers as they came to mind, without any editing or second guessing.
Then it was time to create my vision board. They normally have people flip through used magazines and cut out images or words or ideas that pull them in, provide a spark, bring them alive.
I didn’t have any magazines handy, so I went to a local bookstore and looked through the racks on every topic, taking pictures with my phone of things that drew my attention. Then I came home and started putting the pictures on a single-page document on my computer, arranging, rearranging, adding and deleting as the main ideas and themes began surfacing.
In the end, I had a one-page view of my vision for the year! I printed it out at a local Walgreens on a 20″x30″ sturdy poster board (for about $20, with a coupon!) And here it is!
Suddenly my one-page list on my yellow pad had taken on a whole new shape. Ann and Joan encouraged me to put it in a place where I would see it daily to keep my vision alive.
And just as suddenly, my vision for the year didn’t feel so overwhelming. It felt like a joy! Each activity on my list now looked like a box of chocolates. I just had to decide which one to reach for and taste.
Which ones are from God? Which are my own? Joan said, “Pay attention to where God is leading. Don’t dismiss those nudges.”
God is a creative God, and we’re created in His image. So it shouldn’t be surprising that when we create, when we dream, when we explore who we are and how we’re created, we’ll also find what He wants us to do. As the Bible says:
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).
My son Bo created a vision board, too, and a few days ago, we got together on zoom with Ann and Joan to look at our vision boards together. As Bo was looking at Joan’s, he said, “It almost felt like the board itself was a prayer.”
When I look at my board, it really is a prayer, too. “Lord, this is what I’m drawn to… what do You want to do with it?”
How often do we dismiss the very things that could be guiding us into? We talk ourselves out of them. We minimize them. We assume they don’t matter.
But what if they do?
What if the things that make your heart come alive are there for a reason?
I’m not saying every desire is from God. They’re not! But even in our temptations, there are some nuggets of gold, some questions worth asking, and perhaps some treasure to behold. Part of this process is learning to discern, to ask, “Lord, what’s good here? What are You inviting me into?” And then having the courage to take a step in that direction.
The same God who created us has things for us to do. So it shouldn’t be surprising that He wants us to do them, oftentimes even more than we do!
What about you? What are your dreams and desires and things you love and want to do?
I’ve just posted my conversation with Ann and Joan and Bo on YouTube. You can watch it at the link below.
And if you’d like to talk more and create a vision board of your own, Ann and Joan and I have blocked out a couple hours on April 15th from noon to 2 pm Central Time, and again on April 22nd at the same time, to talk with you more about your vision, your dreams, and your goals. Bring your family or friends or kids and do it together!
We’ll walk you through the process they walked me through, and we can all encourage each other along the way. I’d love to do this with you!
If you’re interested, just reply to me at eric@theranch.org, and I’ll send you more details. I’d love to have 30 join us. Will you be one?
Here’s my conversation with Ann, Joan, and Bo. Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/JEcjQxIr8X4Love,
Eric Elder writes for page, stage & screen to glorify God’s name so Christ may be seen! Use this link to subscribe or unsubscribe.
