Introduction

 We open with a quote from Steven Covey (2004):  “If you want to make a new contribution, you’ve got to make a whole new preparation” (p. xi).  This current coursework is a reflection of this quote, because it represents taking a step into the unknown and creating a new phase in my life.  It has required a whole new preparation and a re-evaluation of everything that has gone before.

While working in this course, I found a note that I had written to myself about nine months ago.  I had been musing over what was missing in my life, and I felt an uneasy stirring inside, a need for ‘something more’ and a lack of focus and direction that irritated me and sent disquieting shivers into my very soul.  In this note, I set an intention to reprioritize my life, find focus, remove ambiguity, create a direction, and establish what is important.  I wanted more passion and grounding, and amazingly this course has provided the vehicle to synthesize and materialize that intention. 

Covey’s (2004) book introduces his eighth habit, finding one’s voice.  The eighth habit asks us to move from effectiveness to greatness.  Me?  Greatness?  It feels like such a stretch, however it resonates to my desire to empower myself so that I can empower others to greatness.  I must accept that the possibility exists within myself before I can fully embrace the possibility in others.

For Covey (2004), voice is a combination of talent, passion, answering the needs of the community, and following of conscience to do what is right.  Voice is a calling, a unique response to soul.  Essentially, it is Soul Care.  Finding one’s voice requires looking deeply into one’s soul, living out of one’s interior self-knowing, finding one’s contribution, and then being a spokesperson for one’s beliefs. 

The following sections will explore my unique calling and how I answer that call.  I begin by introducing archetypes as a symbol of the roles we adopt.  Archetypes are like dense packets of meaning, and they provide a shorthand or blueprint for understanding the roles that we play in this world.  Next, I will explore a brief history of religion and the ways that the various modern traditions compare with each other.  I will also discuss an interfaith perspective.

I will address spiritual leadership and explore the essential qualities that spiritual leaders must embrace to be effective.  This section provides a framework for the creation of my own leadership style.  It assists me to define myself and what I believe and it provides a model for my own future development. 

I will then talk about the role of ministry.  In general, ministry can be defined as Soul Care which is the goal that the Pastor, Shaman, or Spiritual Counselor adopts when ministering to others.  I will discuss the different roles that one can assume, and I will talk about the elements needed by those who offer care to others.  This will provide a vision for ‘Presence’ – a term I use to symbolize the qualities inherent in one who ministers to others.  By identifying ‘presence’, I am setting a mold for myself as I embark on my own personal mission.  I will then talk about Ministry and Spiritual Counseling in the world. 

This paper is based largely on the belief that a collective consciousness exists that is impacted by our thoughts.  If we believe in the collective and in the power to affect the world through our thoughts, then it invites us to assume a greater role to create conditions within ourselves that support global harmony.  We promote the common good by what we send out into the world.  If we join together with other like minded individuals, the force of our thoughts magnifies.  By accepting the challenge to create a better world, we will tip the balance toward greater peace, harmony, acceptance, and wisdom.  Alone we are only one voice, but collectively we can start a movement.  This is not a utopian vision, but rather a vision of each person’s potential to change the vibrations that surround one’s life.

By the end of this work, I trust that my vision will be clear to others, but more importantly, it will be clear to me, and it will provide the framework I need to manifest my vision with as much wisdom and grace that I can muster.  The manifestation begins with the creation of a website and moves on from there.  My wish for you is that you enjoy the journey!

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