Step Six
- Assume, for the purpose of this experience, that God had a hand in the previously noted twists and turns in your journey. Review the list you have made and any additional thoughts that have occurred to you.
- Jot down some possible reflections on the patterns and clues evident in your journey.
- Whether you are used to thinking of God’s involvement in your life in this manner or not, there is value in looking through this lens.
- You are the only one that has to see your notes. Even Deists can find value in looking at the patterns of their life for clues that might suggest directions in the future.
Step Seven
- Using either the magazines with church listings or the Internet, look at the types of churches that are looking for pastors and their job descriptions.
- Include reading about churches in other denominations.
- Moving may be the furthermost thing from your mind at this time, but seeing what is available has the value of becoming a backdrop for reflecting on your own position.
Step Eight
- Take some time to list, in no particular order, some of the biggest challenges of your present position—both the positive and negative ones.
- Meditate on those issues. If God has called you to stay in this place and is present with you in ministry, what might God be saying to you about how you face some of these tests?
- Don’t try to be exhaustive, but simply note some thoughts that come to you.
Step Nine
- Take a short break, maybe a brief walk.
- Then begin to reflect on your time at your church.
- Make note of some of the most satisfying moments in your current ministry.
- Look for ways that can increase the opportunity for more satisfying moments.
- Identify some specific actions that you can take.
Step Ten
- Save a full hour near the end of your time for a look at your future.
- Note the clues from the turning points in your past and the nature of the experiences that give you a sense of satisfaction.
- Either on paper or on your computer, write about the next five years of your life.
- What would you like to see happen in that time?
- What would you like to see begin even if it was not possible to complete in five years.
- What steps do you need to begin to make these possibilities a reality?
Step Eleven
- Having completed these thoughts, take at least 15 minutes or more in the chapel offering these thoughts and possibilities to God in prayer.
- Step Twelve
Now, go home.
- Take your spouse out to dinner (or if not married, take a good friend).
- Celebrate the journey that you are on.
