Adding Value in a Valueless World

I’ve coached over 100 people to date and one thing that never fails to come up in most first sessions with them is this quote - “I don’t know what’s important to me.”

Planning, organizing, even developing a life strategy for yourself becomes hard when you are unsure of what your top priorities are and what is most important to you. You also need to determine your low level wants and necessities. We tend to default to Basic needs that become the battle cry ringing out when the plan is, “take a stab at it.”

If basic needs are all we ever aspire to chase and basic needs are always at the top of the list, when do we ever begin to pursue the true meaning of life? Are we destined for a rat race of check-the-box? Or is there a way to define a way forward that’s purposeful and intentional?

I believe stopping or rather pausing, is the only way to get truly started toward a purpose-filled life. Purpose-filled means value-added. John Maxwell, a man who has spent a lifetime teaching leadership and purpose, says that we have to be of value to add value. If we’re too busy focusing on meeting just basic needs, we never get to the BEING (who we were designed to be) in this called life.

‘Being’ as described in the Oxford Dictionary is your state of existence or your true essence lived out in this temporary life, this life you have while you continue to have breath in your body. I believe when we begin to change our mindset to be focused on the daily lifestyle we lead, the reason why we are here, and how we’re going about living that out, we truly awake to our predestination as defined by God in the Word. God paused in time, had a moment to imagine you in your mother’s womb speaking you into existence (being), knit you perfectly together, let you marinate in your mother’s womb like a winter’s day soup gaining flavor and enhancements, giftings, and personality, and then DING, you were birthed and given His breath of life to be exactly who He created you to be.

Unfortunately, we live in a society where we want to be like everyone else, compete with everyone else, and be driven by every emotion that comes across our heart. These three traits are counterintuitive to a person grounded with true core values or in God for that matter. Core values are the pillars or the anchors of your personal belief system – concerning your interaction with God, others, and yourself. These are rooted in understanding and believing God’s Word and linked to your essence or being as we defined above. When we take the time to pause, just as God did that fateful day you were created, and capture your true values, then life can be led boldly, clearly and out loud!

· This can be done by journaling and answering these challenging questions:

· What do I believe about God?

· What does Gods’ Word say about Him? His characteristics?

· What does Gods’ Word say about how I should live? Do I do this?

· Where does my life and the Word have mismatches?

· What did God commission us all to do? Am I doing that?

· What giftings do I exhibit naturally? Do I exercise them for God and others?

· Who has God placed in my life to do life with? Do I fellowship with them? Explain?

· What do I hear God saying to me today?

· Have I found the one anointed to help me?

Once you capture the true answers to these questions, then your next step is to go back over them again. Often, we leave things out or give the “best right answer” versus the truest and realest answer. Your next step is to then sit with your answers to ponder and meditate in prayer and quiet time. What this really means is how you can add value to the Kingdom and to the world by reaching others for Christ. If God reveals a person(s) to share this with, you should seek out wise counsel to gain a deeper understanding that leads to greater wisdom, an increase of right answers and right direction.

In the end, this exercise will end up providing you with an action plan to understand who you are in Christ, who he has asked you to be in this season, and what you should be doing. It is meant to be done as often as God is drawing you close to Him - recalibrate, reevaluate, and readjust is the cycle you should follow. This ensures you are always adding the best value to your life and others at all times.