Core Purpose | Sara Burt

O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
Out of the mouth of babies and infants,
you have established strength because of your foes,
to still the enemy and the avenger.

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?

Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings^[b]
    and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
    you have put all things under his feet,
all sheep and oxen,
    and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,
    whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

O Lord, our Lord,

    how majestic is your name in all the earth!
(Psalm 8)
I watched a video once of Louie Giglio describing just how indescribable our God is. (Watch here). In this video we are shown pictures of our galaxy and that which exists beyond our galaxy, giving us a glimpse of how physically small we really are.
I couldn’t help but come away from seeing those images thinking about how big God is and how insignificant I really seem. My thoughts echoed that of the psalmist above,
“what is man that you are mindful of him?“
And yet a few verses later, the psalmist described our position, our standing, our worth before our Creator of this cosmos. We are God’s crowning creation. We are given a purpose, to have dominion over that which He created. We bear His image.
In light of the majesty of God and the worthiness of following His calling on my life, how disastrous would it be if I missed His purpose for my life? What if all the good works I am doing fall short of the one work He has called me to, and how do I discern what that is?
A group of ladies at TVBC are reading through “What’s Best Next: How the Gospel Transforms the Way You Get Things Done” by Matt Perman during the month of January, and these kinds of questions are the ones we are tackling. Matt suggests we start with writing a Mission Statement that includes our Core Purpose, Core Values, and Core Beliefs. He shows us scriptures that contain examples of those elements and charges us to begin to find our life calling by doing what we are doing with excellence.
In group discussion a few weeks ago, we noted that imitation is the highest form of flattery. With regards to writing our mission statement, this means that as we share our first drafts of mission statements with one another this next week, we have the freedom to borrow ideas and phrases from others as we hear someone beautifully pen a thought we couldn’t quite express ourselves!
A few years ago when I attempted my first mission statement, I did the very same thing. Using scriptures and other examples Matt presents in the book, I drafted my first (seen below). Have you ever written one yourself? Seen a mission statement that stuck with you? If so, will you share your thoughts below?
As the old saying goes, if you aim at nothing you will hit it every time. Let’s be people of eternal purpose as we bear our Creator’s image and fulfill our callings.
Sara Burt

After our second session studying “What’s Best Next” by Matt Perman yesterday, I was reminded of when I was first learning Perman’s principles for productivity. The biblical way he approaches “getting organized” forced me to become a disciple again of God’s Word and learn something new for immediate practice. As it goes with most kinds of change, the process was challenging and at times painful. But just as we have read the last few weeks in his book, we are called to be good stewards of our time because we love God and therefore love people. Love and generosity should drive our productivity as well as our daily choices.

A few years ago a friend mommy blogger hosted a blog series, asking women to write entries on varied subjects while including practical tips relevant to their topic (see my original post here). Since I was at the time halfway through the pursuit of a Masters in Theological Studies, she asked me to write one offering tips on going back to school mid-mommyhood. As requested, I included practical tips that had helped me survive (including reading the book “What’s Best Next“!), but I also gave an apologetic for why I had chosen to go back to school in the first place. Below is an excerpt:

“At first thought, it may seem as if going back to school is a decision “for me.” Au contraire. My husband and I are approaching our 13th wedding anniversary, and of those 13 years, he was enrolled in either undergraduate or graduate school for almost a decade.

While there were several very difficult years (we added 4 to our family count in 7 years), I truly enjoyed the innumerable late night conversations as he stretched my brain working out his thoughts. Our little family stood beside him when he graduated with his Masters of Divinity, feeling like we all owned a part of that degree.

Little did I know God was preparing me for my own journey back to school as a homeschooling mom of 4.

“Why go back?” “Who will this benefit?”

Five years ago, my oldest was given a school assignment while studying the medieval time period. The assignment required the family to design and create a family crest. After much discussion (read debate), we all agreed on the following family motto: Amo, Disco, Duco: (I love, I learn, I lead). The motto was birthed out of Matthew 22:36-39 (ESV),

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

If you think about it, these verses drive the desire to be educated. As our love for God grows, we want to know Him more. As we know Him more, our love for Him grows. We know wisdom’s source:

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight” (Proverbs 9:10 ESV).

The Burt family motto, Amo, Disco, Duco merely speaks to the two greatest commandments Jesus provided as the foundation for our existence. In loving God we desire to learn. His love drives us to love and lead others, following in Christ’s footsteps.

Furthermore, do we ever cease to be a disciple? God has called and gifted each of us, empowering us to participate in the Cultural Mandate (Genesis 1:28). This means God is glorified as we cultivate and sharpen the gifts He has graciously given each of us, aiming to influence our culture.”

With the Lord’s help and the never-ending support of my family, I finished the degree half a year later. Yet the journey with discipleship, loving God with my heart, soul, mind, and strength, is a lifelong endeavor.

If you are diving into What’s Best Next with Thrive this month, yesterday’s session was a day of many practical tips full of change – which can be challenging. But don’t give up. Take the first steps this week.

Come up with a draft of your mission statement, the declaration of your core purpose that stands true even when your world falls apart.
Next write down a few of your core principles that guide your life.
Finally, jot down your core beliefs including the baseline principle for why you do what you do – the gospel, what God has done for us in Christ.

I can finish this post the same way I finished the guest blog for my friend:

“Bottom line – women rock. You can do this and even enjoy the process! Above all, God will be glorified as you love Him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. So buy some frozen dinners, brew a cup of coffee, and dive in.”