Hey, did you know that 2011 is the Year of the Rabbit? Yep, in the Chinese Lunar Calendar — a repeating 12-year cycle — this is the Year of the Rabbit, which probably means very little to you if you think horoscopes are ridiculous. I mean, how is it possible that everyone born in a given year will be “articulate, talented, ambitious, virtuous, reserved and have excellent taste”? Can you image an entire class of first graders six years from now, all born in the Year of the Rabbit, and all of whom boast the characteristics listed above? But I digress…
What I really want to share is that almost every January my wife and I select a theme for the new year. It usually receives a short title with a one-word emphasis, as in “The Year of Adventure,” “The Year of Stability,” or “The Year of Fun.” You can imagine the circumstances that prompted each of these. For us, it was a sense of needing these elements or characteristics to be more prominent in our lives.
This year, we’re not 100 percent decided, but we’re leaning toward, “The Year of Hospitality.” It’s because of a dramatic shift that we made in 2010 and want to continue on a new level in 2011. Last year, we had a non-family member living or staying in our home almost the entire year — as well as many people from different families throughout the year.
We’re also thinking about “The Year of Kindness,” in which our family members commit to treat one another with gentleness and generosity — the way people do who are truly kind. Our habit of creating a theme for the year gives us something to deliberately chase after – to plan for and aspire to.
What one label, character trait or focus could you adopt — as an individual, a family OR a ministry — that would help you become all that God wants you to be in 2011? What is it you’d like to chase after this year? I’d love to know.
Matt, Byron and Joel: Thanks for sharing your responses! It’s good hearing from you.
Others?
This gives structure to a great idea. Several of us probaly do something similar but without ‘formalizing’ it with a title. Giving it a title gives it more clarity and intention. Our camp is doing it with our relatively new slogan: Alpine: The Adventure of Restoration. We’ve worked the concept of restoration into our three team goals for the year, as the topic of our staff retreat and slowly into the language of our program goals and themes. I like the idea of making it more ‘official’ with a title. Now, to apply the same principles within my role as spiritual leader of my family…
I can especially identify with the hospitality angle. Over the past 4 years, my wife and I have had 5 different non-family members live with us for anywhere from 2-10 months. It has been a great experience all the way around and one we hope to continue into the future.
This is great. I have not thought of doing that for my family. We do choose a theme to work on during our staff training each summer. Last summer it was PDU. The summer before we had several staff “pair up” and occasionally have PDA or public displays of affection (I know that never happens at your camp). In response we had the summer of 2010 focus on PDU or “Public Displays of Unity.” Here are some things from our anonymous end of summer staff surveys:
*The emphasis on staff unity this summer was definitely effective, and I personally noticed a positive difference. I felt as though the support staff and counseling staff were much more connected than previously. The unity of the staff in Christ was truly evident every single day.
*When I left camp I took PDU with me and I’ve been emphasizing it in groups since.
*I perceived that staff was MUCH MUCH more unified this summer.