PROMPTS & PRACTICES | PURSUE WHAT MAKES YOU FULLY ALIVE
The pronoun, you, is key here. It is about you coming fully alive, not someone else. Thus, you would need to be brutally honest with yourself. Also, you cannot allow the voices of what others may think of you to cloud over your pursuit of what makes you fully alive. You do not need permission from others to pursue your dream.
Pursuing your passion is not without risks. There are risks of arriving at dead ends, experiencing little or no financial compensation, facing the possibility of being underappreciated or misunderstood, and facing doubts. The process of taking risks is worth the journey, for the journey teaches something sacred and human about you. I encourage you by echoing the Bible’s most repeated command, “Do not be afraid,” and send you on your way.
You must trust the process enough that pursuing fully aliveness will eventually benefit others and ultimately God. This means the pursuit is not inherently self-centered and narcissistic but over time the fruit of your pursuit becomes a gift to humanity.
Practices
Pay attention to what makes your heart full and alive especially in unguarded moments and unexpected places, make note of it, and see if there is an emerging pattern to what makes your heart beat faster and most alive.
Similarly, ask yourself: What am I passionate about? Make a list and see if there is a discernible pattern. Talk to a close friend who can give you feedback. Also notice when you are most energetic when engaging with your friend.
Ask yourself: What moves me to shed tears of beauty? Tears of beauty include such things as being in amazing natural wonders, witnessing kindness and sacrificial valor of humanity at work, rapturous music or sports performance, observing a piece of art, etc. Then ask yourself: Why was I moved to tears? Frederick Buechner’s wise counsel is appropriate.
“Whenever you find tears in your eyes, especially unexpected tears, it is well to pay the closest attention.
They are not only telling you something about the secret of who you are, but more often than not God is speaking to you through them of the mystery of where you have come from and is summoning you to where, if your soul is to be saved, you should go to next.”
Ask yourself: What brings me sparks of joy? Sparks of joy are an experience of elation, satisfaction, and “being at home.” Joy is an emotion when you know someone is simply glad to be with you. Joy is experienced when deep soul level connection happens with God, others, yourself, as well as nature.