Creating a Personal Mission Statement

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Creating a Personal Mission Statement What has God Taught You from His Word? Place to Begin The place to begin in the creation of your personal mission statement is a clear understanding of your biblical purpose and calling as a believer. David lived out God’s purposes in his generation then he died (Acts 13:36). Step one of the mission statement process challenges you back into God’s Word and a search of the Scriptures that reveal God’s ultimate purpose for all of our lives.

Significant Verses Take a moment to review and write your insights from the verses below to remember why we have been created and the purpose God has called us to as His disciples. Also, write down a couple of verses that God has used to touch you in a special way— those that have been instrumental in anchoring you in His truths consistently throughout your life. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Matthew 28:19-20 John 13:34-35 John 17:20-23 Philippians 3:8-14 Colossians 2:6-7

Your Verses:

What has God Taught You from His Word? Reflection Based on your Scriptural insights, use these questions to prompt your thinking through God’s purpose for your life. List your reflections in short statements below. 1. 2. 3. 4.

Why do I exist as a person? Why did God create me? According to God, what provides man’s greatest joy? What is my response to God’s work of grace and salvation on my behalf? What is my personal response to the Lordship of Christ?

Writing out Your Biblical Purpose Based on your Scriptural search and reflections, write your biblical purpose in the space below. Reminder: a biblical purpose statement should be concise and based upon the biblical mandates given to each believer. Biblical Purpose:

How has God Shaped You in Your Past? Reflecting on Your Journey The questions below will help you identify significant lessons that come from your journey with Christ. These insights provide the foundation for developing your life values. 1. Who are some of the people that have been pivotal in your past? 2. What are some life events that have been influential in your past? 3. What are one or two specific lessons God has taught you concerning your character? 4. The character traits you have learned to value the most are... 5. What are some important lessons God has taught you about the balance of work and your personal life?

6. What are some important lessons God has taught you concerning the church and its role in the world? 7. What are your core convictions and values that are important to you? 8. What are your non-negotiable convictions about people and relationships? 9. What are some important insights God has taught you regarding your ultimate involvement in His kingdom? 10. If you were to describe your passion for life in one sentence, what would it be? 11. If you were to write the next chapter of your life, what would it include?

What is God Calling You to Accomplish? Anticipating Your Future The questions below will help you focus in on what God may be calling you to accomplish in your future. 1. Considering my calling as a Christ follower, when I think about the future, I believe I should focus my energies on... 2. The qualities I most admire and desire for God to shape into my life are... Why? 3. People who know me well believe I am most used of God when I am involved in... 4. Though I may have dismissed the thought at various times for various reasons, at time I have felt that I really should be doing... 5. What ignites your passion? 6. What common insights or themes surface in your reflection? 7. Based upon how God has shaped your past, if you knew you could not fail, what would you do in your lifetime for God’s glory? 8. Using your work to date, write out your personal mission statement. This is a dynamic statement reflecting your best understanding to date of what God is calling you to be and to do in your future. It can be as brief as a couple of sentences or as long as two paragraphs. Effective mission statements have: your biblical purpose, values, convictions and personal vision. Refer to previous sections to ensure all these components are represented in your statement.

How do You Plan to Accomplish Your Mission? Your Spiritual Gifts Your Spiritual Gifts (often referred to as SHAPE) are a foundational component to your mission statement and purpose as a believer in and disciple of Jesus Christ. Your SHAPE will give you the context through which your personal mission statement will be realized in your daily worship and service to God. If you have never completed a SHAPE Profile, please visit our website (www.cccpinehurst.org) at your earliest convenience and do so. If you already have completed your SHAPE Profile, please review the list of spiritual gifts below to be reminded afresh of your gifts. Take a few moments to reflect and envision how your SHAPE will impact the way your personal mission statement will be manifested in your daily life. •

Apostle The supernatural ability to pioneer/plant new churches/ministries, often working in locations/people groups where the message of Christ has not been proclaimed.

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Shepherding The supernatural ability to nurture, care for, guide, and bring believers into spiritual maturity.

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Wisdom The supernatural ability to apply the principles and insights of the Word of God into practical Christian living or a specific situation.

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Helps/Service The supernatural ability to serve in a supportive role, doing whatever needs to be done, so that the ministry is enhanced and people are served.

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Tongues/Interpretation of Tongues This gift was manifested in 3 ways in NT: a known language, an angelic or prayer language or a message in tongues that must be interpreted for corporate worship of the church.

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Giving The supernatural ability to contribute money and resources to God’s work liberally and joyfully.

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Prophecy The supernatural ability to proclaim God’s truth and apply it to life for understanding, correction, encouragement, or repentance.

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Teaching The supernatural ability to acquire truth, communicate it clearly, and apply it effectively causing great Christ-likeness in the lives of listeners.

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Leadership The supernatural ability to cast vision, motivate and direct people to accomplish the purposes of God.

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Mercy The supernatural ability to care for and practically help those who are suffering or are in need.

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Evangelism The supernatural ability to effectively communicate the Gospel to unbelievers so they respond in faith.

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Discernment The supernatural ability to distinguish truth from error, the genuine from the counterfeit, good from evil and right from wrong.

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Signs and Wonders The purpose of this gift is to get people’s attention and authenticate the message of God and His messenger. These gifts are especially relevant in settings where “power” is an important test of truth.

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Encouragement The supernatural ability to come along- side others to strengthen, comfort, con- sole and counsel those who are discouraged or wavering in faith.

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Administration The supernatural ability to understand how organizations function, and execute procedures that accomplish the goals of the ministry.

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Hospitality The supernatural ability to care for people by providing fellowship, food, and shelter.

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Knowledge The supernatural ability to search, systematize, and summarize the truths of God’s Word that are not discoverable by human reason.

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Faith The supernatural ability to see something God wants done, and is confident God will do it in spite of obstacles.

How do You Plan to Accomplish Your Mission? Your Personality Type

How do You Plan to Accomplish Your Mission? Your Personality Type (con’t)

How do You Plan to Accomplish Your Mission? Define Your Roles You live your life in terms of roles—not in the sense of role-playing, but in the sense of authentic parts you have chosen to fill. You may have roles in work, in the family, in

the community, and in other areas of your life. These roles become a natural framework to give order to what you want to do and to be. You may define your family role as simply “family member.” Or, you may choose to divide it into roles, such as “wife” and “mother” or “husband” and “father.” Some areas of your life, such as your profession, may involve several roles. For example, you may have one role in administration, one in marketing, one in personnel, and one in long-range planning. Examples: 1. Wife/Mother, Manager-New Products, Manager-Research, Manager-Staff Development, United Way Chairperson, Friend 2. Husband/Father, Salesman-Prospects, Salesman-Financing/Administration, March of Dimes Regional Director, Friend Define up to seven life roles and then write down these roles below. Next, project yourself forward in time and write a brief statement of how you would most like to be described in that particular role. By identifying your life roles, you will gain perspective and balance as well as identify the core principles and values you desire to live by. Life Roles: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

Linking Your Mission to Your Schedule It’s at this point where the “rubber meets the road,” so to speak. Developing a personal mission statement is vital to engaging life in a purposeful way and honoring Christ in it all! However, without putting it to action it quickly loses its relevancy in our day-to-day lives. How do we link our mission statements to our schedules? Though there’s not a standard-issued step-by-step formula, there are a couple of tips that can help us along—whether we’re Type A’s or B’s or Z’s for that matter! First and foremost, establish a rhythm in life that gives you an opportunity to 1) set aside the busyness of life in order to 2) reflect on your present life situations and happenings and 3) see how you can more effectively incorporate your personal mission statement into every aspect of your life. Socrates is famous for saying that “the unexamined life is not worth living.” How true a statement! Great intentions are never automatic realizations. Thus, taking time consistently to get away from the humdrum of life in order to purposefully examine our lives within the framework of our personal mission statements serves as a great reminder and adjuster to get and keep us on track. What will this look like in your life? Take a couple of minutes and map it out. More Type A personalities tend to operate on a one week/year, one day/month, one hour/week method, where they set that time aside to reflect and examine where they’ve been, where they are, and where they’re going in light of their personal mission statement. Type B’s tend to be more casual and operate on a “needs” basis— taking the time when- ever the need presents itself. Regardless of personality or preference, be encouraged to establish this sort of rhythm consistently in your life. What will yours look like? Take a few minutes to write it out in the space below.