Personal Syllabus Final: THE LIST

"You will ever remember that all the end of study is to make you a good man and a useful citizen."  John Adams

As cool winds begin to blow and the autumn season unfurls, the need to prepare for new challenges naturally increase. Prudence requires inspection of one's home, car, and wardrobe to endure winter's punishing conditions. Likewise, creation around us offers reminders of this, as I observe squirrels gathering walnuts in our back yard. Not that they know what kind of winter we will have, though I suspect those squirrels who survived last winter are a bit more motivated to add to their reserves. What is vital is the needed discipline to fully prepare and not shrink away from the challenge.

Instinct drives the squirrels. In contrast, we humans need to think about it. Each one's situation varies. Those who are just getting started focus on ramping up, perhaps pursuing their first job. Others are facing loss of employment at an age that is most difficult to recover.

On top of that, the introduction of new technologies over the centuries has dramatically altered every aspect of our lives. Career aspirations are radically different from those even a few years ago. It's hard to peruse LinkedIn and fail to see some posting about refreshing one's skills, or that tomorrow's jobs have yet to be created. This places enormous pressure on the modern worker to constantly adapt to rapidly changing work environments and shifting job climates. If we are not careful, a personal growth syllabus could easily be dominated with job skills development. There is a season for developing skills, but I believe Christians need to be mindful of just how much time is devoted to careers.

Scripture does promote hard work as a value and moral obligation:

“For even when we were with you, we used to give you this command: “If anyone is not willing to work, neither should he eat.” For we hear that some among you are living an undisciplined life, not doing their own work but meddling in the work of others. Now such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and so provide their own food to eat.” (2 Thessalonians 3:10–12, NET)

At the same time, the Bible frowns on "selfish ambition":

I will not unpack these verses as I believe their contexts speak for themselves. Motives are clearly what separate the ideas, as is clear from a different word for "ambition" or to "aspire":

Thus, I want my aspirations and ambitions to line up with Christ's call on my life. This includes my career goals. It also means I wish to keep learning skills sharp. Having goals is very useful to that end, so below are my key goals through the end of next year (2015).

Key Growth Targets Through 2015

Academic. I have long embraced a philosophy of being a learner for life. This does not necessarily mean formal schooling. In fact, pursing a Masters of Business Administration (for example) would may not even fit into my rubric for academic target. MBA's are often thought of as career goals, which are absolutely okay. I would argue academic growth targets involve deepening knowledge in areas of study, such as philosophy or history. Below are some categories and books I hope to engage in for academic growth:

1. Philosophy: Dr. Ronald Nash's college text book Life's Ultimate Questions. I have already listened to several podcasts of his lectures. While Nash is not the final answer on philosophy, I feel that his materials offer a reliable introduction to the discipline insomuch as I desire to assimilate the important concepts.
2. Theology: there have been a number of theological items I have been engaging the last couple of years:

• I have wrestled for a while on exegetical handling of Genesis vis-à-vis origins. After writing a paper early this year I have discovered Dr. John Walton's research persuasive. He seems to uphold a high view of Scripture whilst also engaging in Ancient Near East cultural implications, specifically how ancient Hebrews would have naturally understood the language in Genesis 1 and 2. This is such a charged topic that further research is needed. 
• One book I started reading and frankly got stuck on was Kingdom through Covenant: A Biblical-Theological Understanding of the Covenants. As the authors Gentry and Wellum describe it, "Although all Christians agree on basics, we disagree in details over how the Bible is 'put together.' Central to Kingdom through Covenant (KTC) is the construction of a metanarrative that we believe corresponds to Scripture better than that propounded by either covenant theology (CT) or dispensational theology (DT). We also sought to establish a methodology to determine which metanarrative is truer to Scripture." I think I need to regroup and engage this work further. I'd say these two theological issues will keep me occupied!

Career. I deliberately separated career growth goals. Most of us spend so much of our time here that it does deserve special attention. I consider this blog a transparent journal, but one needs to be a little careful when it comes to being vulnerable in this public age. Yet what I share here is already known by my boss.

1. Career Coach. I have decided to engage with a career coach. As I look back, I see that sometimes I have made choices that could have been better scrutinized. Frankly, we could all benefit from a coach or mentor in our lives. 
2. Career Resources. I am taking some time to listen to CD's we have in the office from Dr. Nido Qubein. Typically I am unimpressed with so-called motivational speakers. However, just with career coaching, I recognize that some unhealthy patterns of thinking have eroded my confidence. I want to listen (with a critical ear) to what he has to say and apply those parts I find helpful. Other resources via LinkedIn are certainly part of my catalog.
3. Career Exploration with a new blog. One thing I know I enjoy (as the length and frequency of my posts testify) is that writing is fun. I am exploring how I might take that to the next level. I have spent some money and registered my domain and created a new website (still in progress): http://trempertantrum.com. I felt it important to escalate my writing commitment. And there is something to individual brand development (though I don't care for that term). The new blog will expand on writing interests, exploring topics that could eventually be developed into a real writing project. If I could describe a dream at this stage in life, getting published and even engaging people in various forums would be exciting. I desire to prayerfully explore this and see if God opens a door (or a window).

I think these areas together will be an important collection of efforts for me. It will be interesting to see what God does with this, with various course corrections along the way. I don't control the future, but I believe in that future in a way that I haven't in a while. If today were to be the curtain call on my life, I still think setting out on this journey will honor God. 

Soli Deo gloria and shalom!