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with the clock winding down on 2007, i suppose it’s time for the brief year-end blog reflection that’s part obligatory-introspective and part constructive as well. the upside of my jungian/MBTI temperament (NT) is that introspection is natural for me, but the downside (i think) is that it’s a logical introspection and not a “feeling” (as in NFs) introspection, which can get a little frustrating since contemplating the last year critically becomes more of an analytical exercise than a method of reflection.

with that said, i’ll try to keep this simple for my own sake. last year at this time, i’d hoped for- well, ironically- the same things i wanted in 2006 & 2005: simplicity, depth, and holistic faith. the fact that i seem stuck with the same hopes year after year could mean a couple of things: (1) i’m consistent or (2) i’m not so good at accomplishing my goals. or it might be a little bit of both.

it’s not that i didn’t have a great year- i did and i have a ton to be thankful for. god is god, chris and i celebrated 4 years of marriage, we’re expecting a baby boy in april, we love our community group and our neighborhood, i’m halfway through my phd program, our families are healthy and doing well, and the world- broken as it is- has not yet completely self-destructed.

but i wonder about the significance of the difference between accomplishing a lot and accomplishing what you intend to. so often as i examine my life, i find that a whole lot of what i’m doing doesn’t necessarily correspond to the things i say are most important- so is my idealism fading (maybe) or am i a hypocrite (probably) or do certain intangible hopes just take a long time to cultivate (definitely)…?

well, rather than reinvent the wheel, i’m sticking with my 3-years-running pseudo-resolutions for 2008:

1. simplicity: in a culture of absolutely excessive consumerism and materialism in which i am hopelessly entangled, i hope for more generosity towards others and greater resistance to the market-driven compulsion to endlessly commodify my life in an upwardly mobile accessorization towards oblivion. i want to tighten my budget, better steward discretionary income, invest in social capital, and reduce vocational fragmentation.
2. depth: in a culture of shallow superficialities and relational banalities, i hope to find substance and meaning below the surface of faith, friendships, and community. i want to deepen my capacity for connecting with god, deepen my love for others, and deepen my understanding of community.
3. holistic faith: in a culture of religious vacillation between rigid fundamentalism and pharisaic hypocrisy, i hope to embrace a faith that engages all of life- particularly that which is typically unexamined in the light of the gospel. i want to know jesus in his abundance and his poverty, i want to listen to the voices of the marginalized, and i want to live with prophetic faithfulness to an upside-down kingdom in which the last are first, the weak are strong, and foolishness is the wisdom of god.

happy new year!