On the first Sunday of every month, someone reads a set of questions before we settle into silence at our meeting for worship. We can draw on these queries to guide us in our personal and group meditation. I wanted to post some of April’s queries here, partly for my sake, but also for catBonny and Elise and others who may be struggling with where work/career fit into their spiritual lives (by spiritual, I mean holistic well-being, healthy relationships with individuals and society, and ethical/moral sensibilities). There are sets of questions for the meeting as a whole, as well as for children. Here I’m only posting the “advice and queries for all individuals:”
- How have I been faithful to the leadings of the Spirit in choosing work or vocation?
- What am I doing with my talents, time, money and possessions? Am I sharing them according to the Light I am given?
- Is my conduct at the workplace consistent with my life as a Friend?
- How does my daily work enhance my spiritual life?
I haven’t decided if I’m going to respond publicly yet–I’m going to treat this as a prompt for meditation. I’ll respond in the comments if I feel compelled to do so. Feel free to pitch in with your own reflections, if you’d like.
This is an experiment of sorts. I’ve read that “Advices and Queries are offered for the comfort and discomfort of Friends.” I may turn it into a regular feature. Although I haven’t fully committed to Quakerism yet, I’m identifying more and more with the Religious Society of Friends. My personal exploration will spill out onto Mind on Fire.
5 responses so far ↓
1 Miko // Apr 5, 2007 at 10:30 am
This has been something I’ve been wrestling with in my life, too. On the one hand, I’d be okay if I were the kind of person who could work and then leave work and come home. But I know I’m not. I know my work consumes me, so I know I need to find work that is consistant with my broader ideals. But…that’s kinda where I get stuck…
2 Elise // Apr 5, 2007 at 9:54 pm
Wow, what a great practice - to start a quiet meditation with such thought-provoking questions, especially questions like these that can be considered by people of many different (non)faiths. I like how inclusive they are.
I haven’t had a chance to think for an hour, but here is my initial reactions to these questions.
My first realization is that I probably have chosen my vocation based more on leadings that involve desires for stability, comfort, money, respect, and ease more than leadings based on the Spirit.
The second question caused me to consciously think that many of my talents could be used in any vocation. And I really mean pretty much any vocation. For example, I think I am pretty adaptable and able to maintain a postitive attitude even in difficult circumstances, and I can incorporate these talents into my current profession or just about any other. It’s nice to realize that I have talents I can be using in my current situation, even if it is not as ideal as I imagined it would be five years ago.
Also, the stability my current vocation offers me (like a steady income, free weekends, and medical care) can actually enhance my spiritual life by giving me time to think and meditate and read. An extreme opposite example may be if I was constantly worried about where my next meal was coming from or if I would have a roof over my head during the next storm, I may not have the luxury of even giving thought to anything spiritual at all.
Thanks for sharing these questions, John!
3 Bonny // Apr 5, 2007 at 10:58 pm
I decided to post an extended response to this post, the queries mixed in with some personal ramblings about my current situation on my blog if anyone is interested. = )
Elise:
After I posted my response regarding how my talents could be better utilized in another vocational setting, I really appreciated that you pointed out your ability to adapt and make things work. I think I was thinking about talents as a specific skill set, but I feel like your comment helped me to see beyond that. I think that most people possess some sort of characteristic that can help them to thrive in many work situations. Your pointing out your adaptability, has challenged me a little bit more to think about core characteristics of myself that could be helpful in most job situations- even those that aren’t exactly ideal.
4 John // Apr 6, 2007 at 11:02 am
This set of queries is a tough one for me. I’m spoiled. I’m good at my job. I like the people I work with, especially my boss. It’s generally low stress, and doesn’t demand too much of my time and emotional energy. There’s room for me to grow and always plenty to learn. It pays well enough to provide us with a secure, base income.
At the same time, I feel driven to learn, teach and write, and not about programming. I want to make this world a better place, and not just on my downtime.
I’ve invested so much time in web and database development by now that I’m loathe to throw that experience away as well.
These are my concerns and worries; next step–finding some clarity on this subject. I will continue to meditate on these queries this weekend.
5 Shana // Apr 9, 2007 at 7:49 am
Thanks for posting this months queries. I missed meeting on the first Sunday and so I missed the oportunity to listen to the queries for this month.
I think I am going to print them out and address them in my meditation this month (not just in meeting but in my own meditiation time)
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