Carrying Out the Mission

My husband works on an Air Force base and was telling me that there are a number of COVID-19 cases confirmed and more that had to quarantine. He said that they were going to reduce staffing temporarily.

“We still have enough people staffed to carry out the mission,” he explained. I almost inwardly rolled my eyes. “The mission.” It’s always about the mission. Even their day-to-day work is a mission. But then I got to thinking about what a mission looks like in the civilian world. Does it help to think about your life’s activities as a mission?

Because we all have at least one mission in life and most of us have several. The desire to pursue a career, raise a family, work for a cause, decide to live clean and sober, or follow a spiritual path are all missions we can choose to accept. And they all involve big commitments with daily undertakings, much of which can feel like a slog after a time.

But what if it is your mission in life to excel in your profession, or to commit to putting your family first? What if it is your mission to make a difference, and/or to live a fulfilling, substance-free life? What if it is your mission to live in relationship with God and make him the most important part of your life? What if these are all not just “things we do” but our mission?

I’ve written about the power in perspective. Maybe what we need to get through these long, hard days is a feeling of purpose, or direction, or a goal that can be accomplished. Maybe we need a mission.

When I catch myself sighing at yet another weekly trip to the grocery store or another Monday morning, I try to re-center my thoughts on the task at hand instead of turning on auto-pilot. I look for meaning in the moments. Is there someone I can help, something I can do? One of my missions is to encourage others.

I lived in the dark for a long time, and suffered in silence. I chose not to tell anyone about the darkness I swallowed that threatened to swallow me whole. Now, my mission is to be a light. I could have used a light along my path.

When I find myself getting grumpy about blending another protein shake or picking one more smelly sock off the floor I stop and sit near one of my boys, both now bigger than me. I ask about school, and sports, and college plans. I make myself present and available to listen, or just be in their company, which is quiet sometimes, funny and gross other times. One of my missions is to spend time with my children, who won’t always have time for me.

For a long time I cocooned myself in my own misery, oblivious to my kids growing up right before my eyes. I didn’t make time to be with them because my own needs were all I responded to. Now my mission is presence. To fill up on moments, instead of drinking them away.

When I see an empty desk in my classroom, yet again, and get a text message that a student woke up late, or tired, or with a sick child and can’t make it to school I choose not to get frustrated. It’s not a reflection on me or their desire to finish school. It’s that no one every showed them how to be successful. They were taught to write people off, not write essays. One of my missions is to show up, and teach my students how to do that as well.

Because showing up is more than half the battle. Once they’re there, they can get help. It’s like flipping on a light switch. And if they stay in the light, where it’s warm inside, they can learn and connect and reach their goals. They can turn their past mistakes into earned perseverance. They can choose not to be a statistic.

So these days that have turned into months, that have turned into years have not been just a collection of time. The pain and mistakes of my past have shaped a path full of purpose. I have missions to carry out, whether I’ve consciously accepted them or just found them in front of me and chose to pick them up. My mission is to be an encourager, a present (not perfect) mom, and a mentor to those who have stumbled and are trying to break the cycle.

When you turn your daily chores into purpose and see the greater cause, your actions are infused with energy. Doldrums become determination. It’s not just another Monday; it’s part of the mission you were put here to carry out.

What mission have you chosen to accept?