The Good Life vs The Best Life

2022... An interesting year. Interesting that word interesting. In fact, Dannean and I agreed as recently as last week, that when we feel the other making an unhelpful comment or observation, our response should simply be to say, interesting... This would then act as a caution sign to the other to reconsider their comment, or proceed with increased thought and consideration (it also has the added benefit of being used with much sarcastic humour!)

Coming back to 2022, and on a personal note, this has truly been a 'very interesting' year for us... A year where I have earned very much under budget, and yet a year where we have holidayed in PE, Durban and Cape town! A year where Eduship ran as a trial for our sons with great success, and yet a year where we couldn't get 8 more students to go public in 2023 (we got 3). A year where our little 'startup' church had Easter celebrations for 100 people, but where we had to fight hard to keep just 5 disciples. A year of highs, and a year of hards. 

And while it doesn't all make much sense right now, hang it certainly could be a whole lot worse! And I guess that's half the key to happiness... Remembering you've always got it better than someone else (and in our case, it seems like more than the majority). The key to the other half of happiness for me, is trusting that if I got hit by a bus tomorrow, my best life will have just begun (in heaven / glory). However, before that best life, I am required to live a good life... and that friends, is much easier said than done. Let me explain...

You see I believe there is a great difference between the 'good life', and living the often quoted 'best life'? The good life is lived with a battle mindset... A mindset that causes one to live based on one's values, as evidenced by certain tangible virtues (a value lived). Living one's best life on the other hand, is not lived with a mindset of values, but instead with a mindset of self orientation / preservation (albeit with the best intentions). Sometimes of course they overlap, but in the big decisions, they shouldn't.

But it's how we make our life decisions that remains one of the key elements of building a good life. I have found it very helpful to visually clarify our good (vs best) life, by creating a family coat of arms that includes the values and virtues that underpin and sustain it. (click on the badge for more on this if you're interested)

Anyway, to keep this practical and personal, here are my 2022 'good life' brag items, which I unequivocally subscribe to God's grace...

1. The first being arguably the greatest victory any non single person can have in living a good life... That of having a fun, fruitful and faithful marriage. Dannean remains my greatest earthly asset, whose value to me continues to increase!
   
2. Runner up to this must be us having successfully completed our first year of Eduship - being our homeschool / normal school experiment at the Berry Farm (where we live). If you will, I'll let Connor and Tristan's end of year school portfolios speak for themselves in this regard.
3. Thirdly, I finished another year (now 6 and counting) journeying with a bunch of Christian brothers and fellow disciples of Christ. This requires a level of commitment and dedication to the faith, which I consider one of the greatest privileges and blessings in my life (and which I rarely encounter in broader Christian circles).
   
   
   
   
   
4. And finally, having been able to successfully create and publish 2 online courses, on 2 different subjects, both being very close to my heart, and both many years in the making... (click on either picture if you'd like to view the courses)

But these 4 victories of our attempted good life, did not come easily or cheaply. None of them offered immediate reward or easy satisfaction, and all of them were rooted in our life purpose, vision and mission. And so to borrow the strap line from one of our favourite wine farms in Stellenbosch (Delheim), which we visited last week, 2022 was 'worth the journey'. 

Before I add my musings on 2023, let me add another thought on this idea of the good life. Goodness appears as a fruit of the Spirit in the New Testament of the Bible, written in the Greek (50AD), and translated from “agathosune,” meaning “an uprightness of heart and life”. Then go back another 1000 years, to the wisdom of King Solomon, who taught us to 'Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.' - Proverbs 4:23. Essentially, a good life begins in a good heart, which by definition can only come from and be rooted in God.

On to 2023... And I am reminded of a time in my life when I would seek out a specific word for the year - something that would help provide definition for what I sensed the year ahead would hold. I think this practice had its merits, but good luck in trying to find a word for the year these days! Perhaps instead a string of emojis would be more relevant and applicable in these current times... Here's my first attempt at it; 🙈🍷🙏😅🤐😵‍💫🤪🙉🍷🙏🤮😱🤪😪🙊🍷🙏. Let's just say you need to cover a pretty wide range of negative emotions (obviously including much wine and prayer!) to safely navigate any year since COVID 19 (or in South Africa's case Zuma's kleptocracy from 2009-2018). 2023 of course will be considered many possible things for many different people, but for me, it's primarily another test for the values and virtues I claim to hold dear, and therefore my 25th year since leaving school to live a good life (in an increasingly bad world).

Lastly, and on a work note, my billing job as I've known for the past 5 years (backend business report generator) is on the way out, and the hoped for replacement (as paid Eduship Dadmaster) is not on the way in... And so for someone whose currency these past 7 years has primarily been time, there are not many easy replacements to be found. Needless to say, fortunately we have faith on our side, and know (for my eyes have seen) that with the Lord all things are possible!

Of course this is easier said than done, but God's goodness and His promises have never failed us yet, and that is something we have taken to the bank every time the need (not the want) has arisen. Because as we know, wanting and needing are 2 very different things... The former being the primary substance of the best life, while the latter remains an essential ingredient in the good life. Afterall, the most famous Psalm helpfully reminds us that...

But rest assured, should you put your faith in Jesus, there is a day coming where all that we've ever really wanted, we will have. And that day, will be the best day of the rest of our eternal lives!

Love and blessings, Grace and Glory!