Blogger Challenge Day 2: Where I Want to Be in Ten Years

I have to admit...this one drew me up short. I'm pretty goal-oriented and like having a plan, but I don't tend to think this far out. Ten years from now my oldest two children will be out of the house and my baby will be entering high school. Truly, I'd like to freeze time right where it is and never see that ten-year mark. I know God has great things in store for their lives and mine, but I still want to hold them close and never let them go.

But time will march on, and ten years will be here before we can blink an eye. And this blog challenge is as good a time as any to get some compelling goals on the record for where I want to "be" in ten years.  As I consider that challenge, I can say that I don't have a lot of preference for where I'll physically reside in ten years, as long as it means I am alive, curling up next to my husband at night, prospering in my career, serving in my church, and actively engaged in my children's lives - but I do have a lot of hopes for where I will be in terms of my spiritual and personal growth, so I'm going to choose to drill down on those here.

So, here goes.  If I work purposefully with the Holy Spirit, then in 10 Years I will:

1. Listen more and talk less.  If you know me, you're laughing right now.  Yes, this is a tall order. But I really want to become the person Peter is referring to here:  "You should clothe yourselves instead from the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God."  1 Pet 3:4.  Thank God for the Holy Spirit because on my own, I could never hope to accomplish this, whether I had 10 years or 100 years to work on it.
2. Pray more. I do this a good deal now, and I try not to operate under the burden of a legalistic mindset about how much or how often I pray.  But I am utterly convinced that prayer is powerful and precious, and I just simply need to do more of it.
3. Know more of God's Word.  I love the Word of God...I mean really love it.  If I won the lottery tomorrow (which would require me to buy lottery tickets, I realize), I would quit my job and enroll in seminary.  I'd pursue a Master's and a PhD in divinity.  I'd learn Greek and ancient Hebrew and literally immerse myself in theological study. But I can't use my job and my lack of wealth as an excuse not to pursue those same goals to whatever extent I can. Studying Epic of Eden last year reignited my zeal for biblical scholarship, so if ten years from now I have ignored that hunger for God's Word and know it only as well as I know it now, I'll be disappointed in myself.
4. Serve with high impact.  Having just witnessed the groundbreaking of our future church building, I pray that 10 years from now Celebration will have broadened its global impact and that I will play a contributory part in seeing that happen. 
5. Bear beautiful fruit. While I will not necessarily be in my "old age" (Psalm 92:14), I do hope at 53 years old, I will be better at surrendering to the Holy Spirit and allowing Him to release His fruit in my life. Selfishly, I do want to flourish like a palm tree and be fresh and green under the favor of God, but mostly I know that if I'm still bearing fruit as I grow older, I'm still positioning myself to be used by God.

There are a lot more ways I hope I've grown and changed in 10 years.  I hope I'm thinner and healthier.  I hope I'm slower to anger and frustration and quicker to compassion and forgiveness.  I hope I trust God more and worry less.  And I hope I'm still dreaming. I'm an idealist to my core, and if I ever stop dreaming, it will be time for me to stop living.  :)

What about you?  Where do you want to "be" in 10 years?

-Lea