Introduction to The Zen Christ website: Monthly Goals from "The Guide Book for Christian Living"

*Note: Originally published online in 2007 by Mary L. Johnson, the "Guide Book for Christian Living" is reprinted here on a monthly basis as part of The Zen Christ website.

 

 

*Introduction

 The purpose of this book was based on my long-time interest in self-esteem. After working as an educator, I had attended a workshop on self-esteem that left everyone feeling great about themselves. That translated to an interest in developing and working on programs about raising self-esteem. The Goals Book evolved as a result of this. Goals are, in my humble opinion, something that everyone needs in order to achieve anything in life and have a true sense of self-worth.

 While I was researching a book on self-esteem goals, I actually had a friend who said to me, “First, you have to let people know what a goal ‘is’.” I was left with a rare loss for words! I couldn’t imagine anyone not knowing what a goal is.  I have always had goals in my life and I live in a family of over-achievers who thrive on setting the bar very high for themselves and  everyone around them.

  But after thinking about it, I realized she was right. Some people may never have encountered the “five-year” rule where you plan your life and envision where you’d like to be “five years from now”. Some people wander through their lives and clash into problems and relationships and make routinely poor decisions over and over again. Others map their lives out like generals planning an invasion, with charts and calendars and memo books. How many people set goals for their lives and actually live their lives following a plan? I wondered a lot about that. And it worried me because I knew a young man who died without realizing his dreams and ambitions because of poor decisions and low self-esteem.

 I thought about other young girls and boys  who have so many problems that seem to stem from a lack of caring and feeling good about themselves.  These types of problems often manifest themselves in drugs and violence and poor lifestyle choices for teens and young adults.

 

After starting to write this book,  I was gathering information from different sources, including the self-help gurus. But the writings that were most prominent and most satisfactory in everyday problem-solving were the writings from scripture. And after looking at the source, the only logical teacher for these and all of life’s problems was and is Jesus Christ.

  Jesus Christ was known as “teacher” to his followers.  He was the “beloved counselor” to so many that it became obvious that we need to invoke his teachings in any guide for everyday living. If the Bible is the ultimate source of wisdom, then the New Testament Gospels can be seen as the “Reader’s Digest” for the common man!

  “The Goals Book” is a monthly guide for everyday living. It can be used by devout Christians and anyone interested in studying and following the teachings of Jesus. The applications of his teachings serve as a contemporary guidepost that is relevant for the here and now.

 

 In my opinion, self-esteem awareness is an important aspect in every person’s make-up and spiritual growth.  And the only human that ever lived with a completely balanced psyche and spiritual make-up was Jesus Christ. Jesus also taught others to live as He did.  Through his parables, one can take away something every day and every hour of every year to obtain a better understanding of Christian values and ideals.

 

 Here is a guide book for Christian Living. Let your goals be set through out the New Year as you strive for a deeper understanding of your life as a Christian. And as the year progresses, we can all strive and learn knowing that as imperfect as we are, we are loved and our journey to share in His love will never end!