What Makes You Come Alive?

"Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do it, because what the world needs is people who have come alive". —Howard Thurman

• What makes you come alive? 
• What are you drawn to?
• Called to? 
• Where does your deep gladness and the world's hunger meet? (Frederick Buechner)

These are just a few of the questions being posed to the students, faculty, and staff at RU (Rochester University) as we spend time focusing on vocation and calling in employee training, gen ed courses, and capstone projects. It's not something to just think about once, it's an on going question we need to answer because we are called to different things at different times. It could be in conjunction with your career, it could be something you do on the side, it could be a number of things.

I'm learning this continually, and learning to be attentive so I can see where I am being called in this time of life. But that isn't done without reflection. As a good friend of mine always says, "that which is not reflected on is never learned."

This isn't just a question for those in academia, it's a question for all people so that we can collectively be attentive to where we can use the gifts and talents we have been given in order to better the world around us as we partner with the work God is doing in the world.

What makes you come alive? What brings you joy? How do those things (or that one thing) already join in with the work of God in the world? Or how could it? What steps can you take to be intentional about it?

I hope you'll join me in reflecting on vocation and calling as we enter into the upcoming school year. Or, if you're not in the school year rhythm, as we enter into the fall season. A change in season always seems like a good time to do some reflection :)

If you're looking for a way to get started, here's a practice you can use to begin:

1. Find a calm space where you can spend some time on your own. Feel free to grab a cup of coffee, your favorite snack, or a cozy blanket - whatever will help you feel most comfortable, relaxed, and able to focus.
2. Take a journal, notepad, iPad, or anything else you can make notes on (I always prefer journals for this sort of thing...there's just something about writing by hand that I love)
3. Take a moment to quiet your mind. Close your eyes, and take several deep breaths in through your nose and out of your mouth. Allow yourself to be present in this space for however long you have to give.
4. Once you are ready, begin writing down all the things that make you come alive or that you feel called to.
5. Once you have your list (it may be short or long, there's no "correct" length), take a few more minutes to note which ones you're actively doing, which ones would like to be doing but it may not be the right time for.
6. Finally, take a few moments to reflect on how your list coincides with the place you are in life right now and how you can intentionally partner with God's work in the world through the things you feel called to. And be sure to remember that just because something on your list does not currently fall into your life right now, doesn't mean that it won't ever. The things we are called to ebb and flow with the seasons of life.
7. When you're done, take a moment to thank God for the ways you are able to partner with God's work in the world through the things that make you come alive.