Friday, May 21, 2010

Friday Five - Disciplines

Today's Friday Five didn't have a series of questions, but instead invited participants to share about five different disciples or practices that are currently or formerly practiced, not necessarily spiritual or professional (although those are often an important part, too!) Here are some of mine.

Piano - From the ages 8 to 14 I took piano lessons. And just as she should have, my mom forced me to practice. There was a short time when I practiced excitedly, more than was required, every day because my teacher had a "practice" contest where you got stickers on a chart for each practice session. I got second place the first semester she did this, and first place the second (but never got my first place trophy. boo!) Nothing like a little motivation and positive reinforcement with a sprinkle of friendly competition to get me going! I'll have to remember that when I have kids...

Covenant Discipleship - I really loved being a part of a covenant discipleship group in divinity school. That was probably the most deliberate I have ever been about thinking about, determining, and practicing spiritual disciplines. I should probably work on returning that one to my life.

Volunteering - I think if I were to look at my life as a whole, I have probably been most disciplined in the area of doing volunteer work. I love to do it, but also feel a certain level of accountability. I'm not sure why it is so much easier to be disciplined in this area and not others. Maybe because it is less frequent than every day so there is less chance of burnout. Who knows!

Meal Planning - For some reason I did this much better when we lived at the condo and have yet to get into "the zone" here at the house. The only reason I can think of is the lack of daily routine with Jeff not working. Our days just sort of run together, and we both just pretty much do what we want, when we want for meals. We need to do better.

Boundaries - this is a discipline I am in the process of developing. I've not been nearly dedicated enough in developing boundaries between my personal time and professional responsibilities. I have gotten approval from my Pastor-Parish Relations committee and am working toward these "enforcements" on my own. I am actually really excited about it. We'll see how long that lasts!

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