Checking the Rearview Mirror

Every now and then it’s a good idea to look back and see where we’ve traveled. When we check the rearview mirror of life, we can often see patterns that we wouldn’t otherwise notice, and it can help us remember lessons we learned along the way. Reflecting on the challenges and rewards of the past can give us insights as to where we wish to go in the future.

So, as we come to the end of this series, we’re going to take a look back at some of the key points we’ve explored along the way. As you read this list, have a think about which issues you found most compelling, or confronting. Mark any point you want to dwell on further.

1. Humanitarian work is soul work. You will be changed by it.

2. Spirituality is a core component of human nature and includes our deepest sense of meaning, purpose, hope, and faith.

3. We all have an internal road map (linked to our values, assumptions, and beliefs) that helps us make sense of what we see and experience in life. 

4. Whatever your personal road map, you will encounter unexpected “curves in the road” as a humanitarian worker that will challenge these values, assumptions, and beliefs.

5. Having values, assumptions, and beliefs challenged is rarely a comfortable process. Three common reactions to these spiritual challenges are resistance, surrender, and transformation.   

6. Active spirituality – exercising and nourishing our souls – helps us deal better with the stress of the present, and strengthens our capacity to deal with future stress.

7. Just as people have different personalities, so they have different spiritual temperaments – ways of connecting with the sacred that come most naturally to them.

8. Values inform our ideas about what really matters, and what is best and right. Understanding our values and living in accordance with them helps create a stable spiritual center for us.

9. Active spirituality is not just all about thinking. It is also about experiencing soul food – feeling fed, nourished, moved, refreshed, and connected with something beyond ourselves. 

10. Cultivating quiet is an important, and often neglected, spiritual discipline.

11. Similar to inhaling and exhaling, spiritual “work” and spiritual “renewal” can be intimately connected and both are necessary for spiritual vitality.

Thank you for giving yourself the time to go through this series. It is my sincere hope that you’ve found it thought-provoking, inspiring, and useful. You are humanitarian work’s most valuable and irreplaceable resource. May you continue to exercise and nourish your soul as you persist in the very important work that you are doing.

“Your past is important, but it is not nearly as important to your present as the way you see the future.” (Tony Campolo)

Today: Look back over all the notes you have made throughout this series. Think and write about what you have learned about yourself throughout the series.

This week: Make some notes and set some goals as you answer this final question: How do you want to use what you have learned as you move forward?

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