The Two Things to Give Up for Greater Joy and Purpose
Today I walked my dog around our neighborhood through freezing rain, dirty snow and slushy puddles. Of course, my neighborhood has seen many more pleasant days and many more will come. Knowing that only made me want to escape to one of those days, either past or future.?
However, I resisted the pull because I’ve given up “longing and rumination” for Lent.
During?Lent, many Christians “give up” or “take on” something as a reminder and representation of Christ’s sacrifice leading to Easter. It’s meant to strengthen your connection with God and create more space for Him in your life.
In my life, longing and rumination serve as an indulgence like chocolate or alcohol that fill space to be otherwise inhabited by God and other relationships. These longings and ruminations give me a false sense of control and distract me from real life—because real life can be hard.
Are You Distracted by Longings and Ruminations?
The dictionary defines longings as “a strong desire especially for something unattainable,” and rumination as going “over in the mind repeatedly.” Put simply, longings and ruminations are ideas, hopes, worries and memories that you turn over and over in your mind for emotional gain by remembering, imagining, fantasizing or wondering.?
Longing is a “when this…” thought, while ruminations are “what if…” thoughts.
For example, you might be longing for:
You may be ruminating on:
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Even if they point to a good thing, persistent longings and ruminations steal you from the present moment, which is where life is. For all its “not yets,” regrets, fears and discomforts, only the present moment is really real. Relationships aren’t made in longings and ruminations. You can’t create, love or grow in your mind’s version of the past or future. We only have?now.
What To Do Instead?
You’re encouraged in Lent to?replace?what you’re giving up with a practice that draws you closer to God, others and your core purpose. Following that model, here are three examples of practices I’ve been doing?instead?of longing and ruminating that have been game-changers for me:
Whether you observe Lent or not, here’s where we can all agree: Spending your energy on longings and ruminations robs you of life.
Consider giving it up for the next 40 days and see what happens. If it works as well as I think it will, you’ll find greater joy and purpose… even through the hard seasons.
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About the Author. Matt Norman coaches and advises executives on how to build great people and culture. He is President & CEO of Norman & Associates, which offers custom coaching and consulting in the areas of talent strategy, personal effectiveness, planning, and goal alignment. Norman & Associates also provides Dale Carnegie cohort-style action learning programs to help people improve how they communicate, lead, influence, and work together.
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Excellent advice Matt. Sometimes I find myself longing and/or ruminating in bed which makes it difficult to fall asleep.
Somatic Life Coach & Emotional Regulation Expert A soft landing space for women doing big things Power Meets Peace: Luxury Self Love Retreat for female founders & executives now enrolling 4.1.25.
1 年This actually isn’t a mindset issue at all. Ruminating occurs in the body. You can trick your mind but you can’t lie to your body. It needs to be healed on a deeper level.????
Leadership development | Executive and Physician Coaching | Talent Development
2 年Thanks Matt. This is a great article!
Bringing Light to dark places
2 年So good, Matt!
Designing the future of medicine with AI, Devices, and Services. Chief Medical Officer Mankato Clinic, Chief Innovation Officer at Stratum Med, Clinical Director at Nabla, Podiatrist, Co-Founder Sky Surgical
2 年Thanks for the post Matt Norman. Taking thoughts captive and changing our mindset and is so important.