During church Sunday, there was a theatrical presentation by the dance ministry. The performance was choreographed to a classic gospel song called “The Potter’s House.” The song alludes to an often used allegory in the Bible that refers to God as a potter (and, subsequently, to believers as clay).
Full disclosure: initially I was slightly irritated to see a theatrical performance before the sermon. Despite how progressive I like to believe I am, I would have preferred a selection by the choir instead. Therefore, I was only half listening initially. However, as the song played, I started to be present. The lyrics from the refrain caught my attention:
“Give him the fragments of your broken life, my friend; the Potter wants…to put you back…together again.”
That sentiment resonated with me. Much to my surprise.
On the surface, there is nothing “broken” about my life. By all “measurable” accounts, things are groovy.
And indeed they are.
However, what resonated with me was the concept of fragments…of things being shaken… of the need to put pieces back together.
A lot has happened in my life in the last four years. Let’s recap:
- June marks the four-year anniversary of leaving my nine-year job at my previous employer
- July marks the four year anniversary of leaving my beloved NYC (and all that came with that: professional network, friends, church home, social hub)
- I moved to “rural-yet-cosmopolitan” small-town Charlottesville, VA for two years
- I attended and graduated from business school (disruption squared)
- I moved to a new state (and the polar opposite of all that came with NYC)
- I started a new career in a new industry and a new function (disruption cubed)
- I got engaged
- I got married
- I started a new job
- I stated another new job
All of those things are good. All of those things are blessings. All of those things are things for which I longed. However all of those things represent change; all of those things represent some type of disruption.
All—and I mean all—aspects of my life have been shaken and stirred. And, when moving 500 mph (as I have been), it’s easy to take each new move for granted: chalk it all up as “part of the process”.
But movement for movement’s sake is just that…
By way of definition:
By way of definition:
move·ment [moov-muhnt]
noun
5. abundance of events or incidents.
An “abundance of events or incidents” doesn’t necessarily equal accomplishment; especially when you don’t take time to reflect on your goals and on your purpose.
My revelation on Sunday is that I’ve been holding on to all of these pieces…to all of these fragments:
- the personal lessons garnered from taking a leap of faith back in 2008
- the myriad of lessons I learned (personal and professional) in business school
- the business acumen and leadership insight gleaned at my current employer in the last two years
- my inherent passions and the problems I am called to solve
The song resonated with me because it was simultaneously a reminder and a call to action:
- Reminder = there is a purpose for all of my experiences
- Call to action = make the time to (re)discover said purpose
Accordingly, a few questions came to mind for me and I figured they were worth sharing:
- What are your natural skills and abilities?
- What are the defining experiences in your life?
- How do you combine #1 and #2 to identify the skills/insights/perspectives that are unique to YOU?
- What problem(s) are YOU uniquely positioned to solve given #1, #2, and #3?
- How are all of your experiences to date laddering up?
- Are you a part of something much greater than yourself?
- What can you do…with what is already in your hand?
It’s so easy to blow through milestones, accomplishments, and defining experiences; particularly when you’re perpetually in search for the next one. But if we pause, take an inventory, and put together all of our collective pieces, we may be surprised by the work of art that is already in front of us.
Hmph. And to think, I wasn’t even going to pay attention at first.
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