But to where, exactly?
Posted On September 9, 2015
Today is day 2 in my year long journey. “To where?”, you ask. Well, I have no idea what my end goal is from this journey, but I’m reminded of the quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson:
“Life is a journey, not a destination.”
That’s so true for me in this expedition. I don’t have any idea where I’m going. Instead, I’m focusing on the path that I’m taking and letting each day’s discoveries guide my path for the next day. While I am only on the second day of this, it seems to be going pretty well.
Now, as easy as it is to say that I’m just kind of throwing myself on some childlike adventure with absolutely no structure or end goal in mind, it’s not quite that simple. I have structure to this journey that is different than what I’ve done in my life previously (otherwise this would be just like normal life and not an adventure, though life IS an adventure…. more on that later). Anyways, mostly I’m giving myself a break from the things I need to take a break from and allowing one year to grow in Christ without distractions.
So what am I trying to get out of this?
Goal 1a) Discover who I am and who God wants me to be through prayer, scripture, self-reflection, and hopefully some practices that are a whole lot more tangible that I can share with you!
Goal 1b) Become the man that I will be for the rest of my life through practice, discipline, and behavior modification if needed.
Goal 2) Decide what I’m going to be doing through the rest of my life by seeking God’s will and actually looking at job possibilities, internships, etc. (AHHHHH! SCARY!!! I don’t wanna adult.)
Goal 3) Define for myself some words and ideas that I have never fully understood but are so intricate in my life: love, relationships, break-ups, heartache, social situations, loss, success, and happiness to name a few.
(I realize I could have done 4 goals, but I really don’t like the number 4. So, there are three.)
Realize that none of those goals are end destinations (other than maybe goal 2) but more like continual discoveries that I’m using this next year to get a jump start on. Knowing me, I can’t just have arbitrary goals and expect to achieve them without some boundaries or rules.
So here are the rules:
1) Minimize Distractions. Tangibly that means: limit social media (*gasp*), back off on some of my extra-curricular activities (“Did he just say that?!”), and no dating until my journey is complete (“Okay, now he crossed a line”). Let’s be honest, as awesome as it is to be able to share yourself with someone in an intimate way with the prospect of marriage in the future, I simply can’t share myself until I figure out who I am. I’ve already hurt too many people by attempting to do this and I shall not permit that any longer! Plus, it’s not like I’m all alone. I’ve got some kick-butt friends and a stellar family that is helping me through this.
2) Dive into God’s word. Like, read it every day. I’m trying to create the man that I will be for the rest of my life. I’ve really got 2 options: a) try to focus on how the world sees a man and replicate that image or b) try to focus on how God sees a man and replicate that image. Since in my experience God has never fallen short of my expectations (only exceeded them) I’m going to stick with that idea.
3) Try new things. I’m really more of a “spend years planning it out before I finally implement it” kind of guy. I’m a mathematician; I like plans. But I’ve discovered that one of the fastest ways to learn in life is to try things out. (My awesome brother taught me that one.) So, my plan is to be spontaneous and live life courageously and maybe I can get that mentality ingrained in me enough that if God says “go here” or “do this” then I can easily do exactly that.
So, I’ve written all of this and I still haven’t left my dorm room today except to do some laundry. Now, it’s time to post this and get out of here so I can go live my life the way God intended for me to live it. Or at least try to discover what that is.
Best of luck in the real world and God Bless,
Christopher
About The Author
admin
Christopher Hanson is a recent graduate of Simpson College where he obtained a double major in Mathematics and Computer Science. While there, he embraced the "Liberal Arts Experience" which granted him a continued passion for Spanish, theatre, creative writing, service, justice, and principally: people. He currently works in DevOps in the Twin Cities, and enjoys pursuing a number of creative projects, long walks by the lake, and making new friends. You can follow him on Instagram and Twitter @XTopherHanson13.