A New Checklist - Achievement is Passing (Focus 3 of 4)

ICEBREAKER
If you could choose one unconventional success metric by which to measure yourself, what would it be? (For example, someone might rate themself as the world's foremost appreciator of peanut butter and syrup on pancakes.)

Once you've broken the ice, see what this Spotlight is focused on by clicking the "focus" below.

Let’s talk about what you got done today. 
Listen to this audio clip when you’re ready to begin today’s Spotlight.
(And welcome, by the way! It’s great that you’re here!)

Hopefully that makes enough sense to get you started.

Pray this prayer to get into it:
Lord,
This is a day that you have made -
like so many others, without fail.
It's astonishing that you keep doing this
without ever forgetting what - or whom -
these days are for.
Amen.

Welcome Perspective: Life's quality is not simply a sum of what we've accomplished.

Respond to this by meditating on the song "The Long Defeat" by Sara Groves, covered here by Justin McRoberts.

Worship Perspective: God does everything remembering that you are whom it is all for.

Learn Perspective: The things we do are for relationships, not the other way around.

I'm really sorry, everyone. I had a great chat with Amos Buelow on Zoom, but tech gremlins got the better of us, and the recording didn't work out. I was looking forward to you hearing his responses to your questions, and it's a bummer we can't share that conversation right now. We're figuring out how to avoid this in the future.

In the mean time: 

Let's talk about reconfiguring goals in view of relationships by

1. Getting into pairs.
2. Find an example of a "Goal Setting Worksheet" on the internet somewhere. 
3. Tweak it. How would you improve this worksheet with the wisdom regarding relationships that we've worked through today? 
4. Share with the rest of the group what you came up with.

Serve Perspective: Goals can focus us on people and not simply lists of todos. 

Prayer Activity

• Setting the Stage
  1. If possible, form a circle, either seated or standing.
  2. We're here to create a space for each of us to share and pray for one another in a supportive manner.
  3. Remember, it's completely okay to pass if you prefer to listen.
  4. Let's agree to keep what's shared here confidential and create a safe space for everyone.

• Sharing & Listening
  1. If you have something on your mind that you'd like prayer for, feel free to share. It could be a concern, a joy, a hope, or anything else.
  2. We'll pass around an object (like a small stone or a token) to indicate whose turn it is to share. The object will be whatever is suggested first starting now.
  3. Let's listen attentively and respectfully to each other, remembering this is a time for empathy and support, not advice or solutions.

• Praying Together:
  1. After everyone has shared, we'll start praying.
  2. We'll start with a collective prayer. One of us can begin, thanking God for our shared stories and asking for his guidance.
  3. Then, let's each silently pray for the person to our right, thinking about what they shared.
  4. We'll conclude our prayer time with the Lord's Prayer, to reaffirm our unity and support for each other.

THE LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. 
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen.

Farewell Perspective: Let's reconsider how good, delightful, and worth it are defined.