I just started reading a new book…well new to my bookshelf anyway. “Hand Me Another Brick” by Charles Swindoll has been around a while, but I just recently found it on a bookshelf where I work and thought it would be a good read and study.

The tag line for this book is “How Effective Leaders Motivate Themselves and Others.” Yes, I think I could learn quite a bit from Mr. Swindoll and Nehemiah.

And of course, I didn’t get too far into the book without having to stop and think about a question.

“In twenty-five words or less, how would you summarize your primary mission, the most important task you’re trying to accomplish in your realms of leadership?”[i]

I have worked up a mission statement for different ministries, for my blog, for my book publishing, but never a personal mission statement. So this idea really intrigued me.

I’m sure you can think of some mission statements from Scripture. Here are a few I recall. See if you know who said them (answers will be at the bottom).

#1

“If serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the god of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

#2

“Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.”

#3

“Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

#4

“I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.”

#5

“Remember me with favor, O my God.”

#6

“Let my people go.”

#7

“Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?”

#8

“Meaningless! Meaningless!”

#9

“I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers: You have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the dream of the king.”

#10

“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

#11

“What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?

#12

“Grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.”

#13

“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.”

#14

“He believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.”

#15

“The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”

What fun to find words used by some of our favorite biblical believers that could be used as their mission statements! Maybe they aren’t the words they would have chosen, but they are words we’ll remember them by. Maybe you feel there are other words that might be better. If so, let me know. I’d love to hear them.

But now the hard part. Coming up with my own mission statement. One that describes me and that when others hear it will know it belonged to me. So here goes. My personal mission statement.

“With God’s Spirit leading me, I will direct others to Jesus through my words, actions, writing, teaching, prayer, and example. Love God and love others.”

Phew! 25 words don’t seem adequate for a mission statement…especially for a writer! But I suspect I could take each element in the above statement and clarify it. That might satisfy my desire to elaborate.

Do you have a mission statement? If so, I’d love to hear it if you’re willing to share it. If not, maybe it is something you’d be interested in pursuing. It was a good exercise and one that took a bit of thought on my part. It can remain personal. No one would ever have to know you’ve done it. But like our biblical friends listed below, if you’ve lived your life loving Jesus and others, you already have a mission statement!

I’ll go back to my reading now and see how far I can get today. Until tomorrow…

Grace and peace be yours in abundance,

Donna

#1 – JOSHUA (Joshua 24:15 – NIV); #2 – RUTH (Ruth 1:16 – NIV); #3 – PAUL (Philippians 3:13b-14 – NIV); #4 – MARY (Luke 1:38 – NIV); #5 – NEHEMIAH (Nehemiah 13:31b – NIV); #6 – MOSES (Exodus 5:1 – NIV); #7 – ESTHER (Esther 4:13-14 – NIV); #8 – SOLOMON (Ecclesiastes 1:2 – NIV); #9 – DANIEL (Daniel 2:23 – NIV); #10 – JESUS (Luke 19:10 – NIV); #11 – JAMES (James 2:14 – NIV); #12 – PETER (2 Peter 3:18 – NIV); #13 – JOHN (1 John 4:16-17 – NIV); #14 – ABRAHAM (Genesis 15:6 – NIV); #15 – DAVID (1 Samuel 17:37 – NIV).

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