How long you stay, 5 minutes, 5 days or 5 weeks, is up to you: 
     
1. Let Go.  Release all activities that regularly absorb energy from you, especially all work-related actions and thoughts. Genuine vacations can’t happen unless you vacate your mind of thoughts that can easily and often unconsciously lure you back into work mode. A rubber band on the wrist can help you avoid thinking about work. Whenever work-thoughts surface, give yourself a little pop.
   

2. Lose the Schedule. Much of our daily anxiety is connected to our having to do this or be there at a certain time. True vacations take all the demand out of time. While on vacation, forget about having to do anything on time; live free and easy in time.

3. Delight Yourself.  Engage fun, healthy, and wholesome activities for joy sake. Submerge yourself in a spirit of play. For more playful inspiration, visit www.holyplay.com.
 

4. Love the Margin. Margin is the space between our load and our limits. Such space is virtually non-existent in our “crazy busy” world. Savor the empty spaces in your vacation, the times when you are sitting, being still, and doing nothing. Aaahhh. Whether or not you have made plans to get away physically this summer, plan to get away mentally and emotionally. Your soul, your family and friends will thank you.        

I may be reached at kjones58@aol.com

Thank you for your support in introducing Holy Play: The Joyful Adventure of Unleashing Your Divine Purpose to the world. The book has been published and amazon.com will be shipping copies soon. (My copies will be arriving later today!)

Though I have emphasized purchasing Holy Play on this day and your asking family and friends to do the same, I hope you spend some time, as well, thinking about your purpose and some of the questions I raise in earlier blog entries. Take the “Holy Play Challenge” located elsewhere in the blog. Take time to become clear about what it is you really want to do now in life.

By God’s desire and grace, the choice is up to you, and you have it in you to imagine and create your most adventurous purpose. Do it; I dare you. Lean into who you are; lean into your unique purpose. You were born to play and soar! We all are!  

Remember to order your copy of Holy Play TODAY at www.amazon.com.

Publisher’s Weekly has called Holy Play, “an engaging…provocative counterweight to the popular idea that God has predetermined a unique, singular purpose for each life.” Noted Author, Tama Kieves, writes, “Get ready for an honest, light-filled, and delicious conversation that will change your life.” 

Please join the hundreds of people who have committed to purchasing Holy Play at www.amazon.com on Saturday, February 10. I am happy to say, “Thank you” by giving you a copy of  Distracted by Glory: Proven Strategies for Writing, Publishing, and Promoting Spiritual Books (50 page booklet). Just email me at kjones58@aol.com with proof of your purchase and your mailing address.  

THIS JUST IN. Our daughter, Jovonna, just came downstairs and asked, “Guess what today is?” With glee, she responded to her own question, “Holy Play Day Eve!” She’s right.

JOIN THE FUN! STARTING NOW! ORDER TODAY, HOLY PLAY DAY EVE, OR TOMORROW, HOLY PLAY DAY, AND RECEIVE YOUR FREE GIFT.

HAPPY HOLY PLAY DAY EVE AND HAPPY HOLY PLAY DAY!!!

I have developed a simple practice for creating more space in my life and mind to think about the things that matter deeply to me. I call it “Unloading.” Try it and see if it creates more space for you to think more clearly.

1. List all the things you would like to accomplish during the day.

2. Pause for a minute or two.

3. Identify all the tasks on your list that can wait.

4. Pause for a minute or two.

5. Visualize accomplishing your remaining “must-do” tasks at a patient or “savoring” pace. If you feel yourself becoming harried in your vision, consider turning a “must-do” into a “next-day.”  

For more information on living at a savoring pace, visit www.savoringpace.com.

I give myself permission to pursue my dreams.

I give myself permission to make pursuing my dreams a top priority . 

1. I feel excited about my work.

Often___  Sometimes___  Rarely__
 

2. I lose all sense of time when I am working.

Often ___ Sometimes __ Rarely___ 

3. I am thankful for my work.

Often___  Sometimes ___ Rarely___

4. My work offers ample opportunity for personal learning and growth.  

Often___ Sometimes___ Rarely___

5. Work feels like play.Often___ Sometimes___ Rarely___

If you have checked “sometimes” or “rarely” twice or more, consider exploring your purpose more deeply by reading Holy Play: The Joyful Adventure of Unleashing Your Divine Purpose.

Visit www.holyplay.com .

Holy Play and Freedom

When it comes to purpose, there are many persons (including some who’ve read The Purpose Driven Life) who still feel unsure about their purpose. I believe the source of this hesitancy and doubt about purpose is connected to how we understand God and purpose. 

I can use my own experience as an example.  About twenty years ago,  I was torn between remaining as pastor of a growing local church or beginning a Ph.D. program and becoming a seminary professor. My breakthrough came when I heard the following words in my spirit after praying one morning. “Know this: Whichever path you choose, I will be with you.”  

That “message” set me free to decide my destiny and purpose without fearing that my decision would anger God in some way. Not only did I go on to complete a Ph.D. program and become a professor at several seminaries, but as a result of my experience, I think about God and purpose in a way that’s different from traditional understandings.  

Regarding God, based on my experience and biblical teaching, I refuse to see God as  “a domineering parent” who demands that we do this or that, or else.  Rather I envision God as “Our Great Beloved Partner” who graciously grants us inspiration and freedom to imagine and live our dreams. And, in regard to purpose, I have lived and enthusiastically teach that purpose is not something we receive from God; purpose is something we joyfully create together with God, to our and God’s great joy. 

I believe that such fresh understandings about God and purpose free us to think about vocation and life-work in more spiritually open and exciting ways. We become open to seeing new possibilities for ourselves. The end result is perceiving and living  purpose with great clarity and confidence. 

Holy Play and Joy

I believe there are many persons who though feeling sure about their purpose, don’t feel as much fulfillment as they desire. One way to determine whether or not your work is as fulfilling as it can be (and as God wants to be) is to ask yourself the following questions:

How often do I feel excited about my work?

How often do I lose all sense of time when I am working?

 Am I truly thankful to be doing what I am doing?

Am I learning and growing enough doing what I am doing?

How often does my work feel like play?  

Such questions can help you uncover your true satisfaction or dissatisfaction with what you are doing. In the case of the latter, you have a choice: Seek work that feels more like play (work that more often than not fills you with passion and anticipation) or settle for less?  The choice is up to you.  It really is.  

While I acknowledge and appreciate the positive impact of The Purpose Driven Life by Pastor Rick Warren on millions of lives around the world, I respectfully raise serious concerns about some of Pastor Warren’s assumptions and beliefs, in order to promote deeper reflection about the role of persons in discerning and living divine purpose.  First, The Purpose Driven Life teaches that God has decided a destiny for each of us. While sounding spiritually appealing, such a view effectively portrays God as a domineering parent. This is not the kind of God we see in many Bible stories. The biblical purpose narratives of Moses, Isaiah, and Mary, the mother of Jesus, have God inviting not demanding acceptance. Thus, an alternative view to Warren’s is that God wishes to inspire our choices not dictate them. 

Second, Pastor Warren teaches that purpose is ultimately a done deal. God has decreed our role; our job is to decode and discover what God has already decided. Again, biblical testimonies suggest otherwise. For example, when Moses raises concerns about his perceived speaking limitations, God concedes and allows for Aaron’s involvement as lead liberation spokesperson (Exodus 4:14-16). Perceiving God as providing us afinalized purpose–take it or leave it–blinds and binds us regarding two of God’s greatest gifts to humanity: freedom and creativity. Purpose is not just something we receive from God but something we create with God.  

Finally, Pastor Warren begins his book by declaring, “It’s not about you…you were born by [God’s] purpose and for [God’s] purpose.” With all due respect, purpose is about you. Good religion celebrates divinity and humanity in the same breath. Purpose is about you, your aspirations, and your choices. Why wouldn’t it be about you, a child of God created ”a little lower than the angels, and crowned with glory and honor”? (Psalms 8:5)  If God wanted to live your life for you, God would not have created you in the first place.

One can stand on sound biblical, theological, and spiritual ground and believe that purpose is not something we passively receive from God, but rather something we actively create with God, in a sacred adventurous spirit of deliberate intention and joyful freedom. This belief unlocks amazing new energy and openness for creating a purpose that uses all our God-given imagination and talent. It inspires persons to stop waiting for God to tell them what to do and start doing what God has been inspiring them to do all along.   

Does purpose involve Godly guidance? Certainly. Just remember that whatever our purpose, God is excitedly expecting us to play our part in the last syllable of the word guidance.