When talking about direction here at The Crossroad, we often talk about naming our core values in order to get There. Your values are overarching principles that guide your life and can help you make tough decisions. For instance, do you value efficiency or honesty more? That will help you decide whether or not to tell a white lie in order to get the product you want quicker. But where do our values come from? Today I’d like to suggest that they come from what we love.
Humans as Lovers
Christian philosopher James KA Smith, in his book Desiring the Kingdom, proposes a model of the human person as a lover, instead of primarily a thinker or believer. He says we are not primarily defined by the ideas we recognize (thinker) or the commitments we make (believer), as these are reductionistic: a narrow view of what it means to be human that doesn’t take into consideration what it means to be an embodied person. Instead, Smith argues that we are “embodied agents of desire or love.” We do indeed still both think and believe, but we do those things as motivated by what we love. Our love sets the trajectory that determines what we value.
Vision and Aim
Smith views love as an arrow that points us from our habits towards what he calls the target/ object, but what we would refer to as the Transcendent There. He isn’t speaking necessarily of the specific things we love (a sports team, favorite food, or even our loved ones and family) but rather about our ultimate desires and loves that drive our values and our vision of a Transcendent There. We do not come to these things purely rationally, but from the gut.
You may not be able to fully explain why your values are the way they are. That is why, in our values exercise, we recommend going off of instinct through a list of values and seeing what sticks out to you. What we love aims us towards a vision of a life of flourishing, which is enacted by our habits.
Habits and Actions
Finally, Smith suggests that our love gets aimed at a vision of flourishing through our habits. The things that we do every day affect the direction we walk in. We are always moving towards something, even if we do not realize what it is. Our habits orient us towards certain dispositions that will affect what we desire. For example, if you prioritize a regular sleep schedule, you will come to love feeling well rested and full of energy and will direct your love towards a vision of discipline as flourishing. Or, if you make it a habit to check your emails every morning, you will come to love being connected to others and up-to-date on information. And this love might aim you towards a life that will value productivity over rest.
As embodied creatures, what we do affects what we love. Without realizing it, the things we do every day will help determine what we love and what we see as flourishing. Therefore, it is not only important to set vocational goals to get there, but to cultivate our habits to aim us towards a life that takes our whole selves into account. When thinking about what you value, also take into consideration what you love and how your habits are aiming you in the direction you want to go.
Gracie McBride is the Content and Systems Development Coordinator at The Crossroad.
