Recalibrate Your Life: Navigating Transitions with Purpose and Hope

by Kenneth Boa, Jenny Abel

Overview

As we make our way through life, we find ourselves in times of transition where we need to reassess who we are and what we do.

Living well doesn't happen automatically for followers of Christ—it happens when we have planned ahead by reviewing and recalibrating our lives on a regular basis, and when we transition from one stage of life to the next. Times of transition, especially in midlife or later life, are ideal moments for recalibrating our priorities and habits.

Ken Boa and Jenny Abel give us the perspective and practical tools needed to evaluate our God-given gifts, talents, skills, wisdom, knowledge, resources, and opportunities so we can use them to the full extent God desires. It involves an intentional recalibration and envisioning of one's life based on God's universal and unique purposes for each person as we move from the demands of our careers into a deeper sense of calling. This eternal perspective allows us to live meaningfully now and into the future so that the best is yet to come.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781514000724
Publisher:	InterVarsity Press
Publication date:	02/21/2023
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	614,069
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Kenneth Boa is an author, speaker and the president of Reflections Ministries. He is the author of over fifty books including Conformed to His Image, 20 Compelling Evidences That God Exists, Face to Face and Faith Has Its Reasons. He is a contributing editor to the Open Bible, the Promise Keepers Men's Study Bible and the Leadership Bible, and is the consulting editor of the Zondervan NASB Study Bible. Boa earned a BS from Case Institute of Technology, a ThM from Dallas Theological Seminary, a PhD from New York University and a DPhil from the University of Oxford. Boa teaches a weekly Bible and Faith study at Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, Georgia, where he resides with his wife.

Jenny Abel is a freelance writer and editor based in Charlottesville, Virginia. She coauthored A Guide to Practicing God's Presence and Shaped by Suffering with Kenneth Boa and has served as editor of the monthly Reflections newsletter since 2017.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Road Goes Ever On and On

Part I—Perspective: What Gives Meaning to Life?
1. Leaving a Godly Legacy
2. Numbering Our Days
3. Treasuring God and People
4. Moving from Career to Calling
5. Developing a Better Vision of Retirement

Part II—Purpose: What Gives Direction to Life?
6. Understanding God's Purposes
7. Discovering Your Unique Purpose

Part III—Practice: How Do I Wisely Invest My Life?
8. Stewarding All That God Gives
9. Stewarding Time
10. Stewarding Talent
11. Stewarding Treasure
12. Stewarding Truth
13. Stewarding Relationships

Conclusion: Living So That the Best Is Yet to Come

Acknowledgments
Index of All Tools
Tips on Using the Tools
Seven Keys to Living and Finishing Well
Scripture Guide for Transitions
Notes

What People are Saying About This

Pat MacMillan

"I, like so many others, find books about life purpose irresistible. Purpose plus me is a compelling combination. Ken Boa and Jenny Abel's book, Recalibrate Your Life, sets a new standard for the genre. Every chapter contains a comprehensive overview of God's perspective on the subject, and this—coupled with interesting stories, creative metaphors, and the wisdom of sages across time—brings the content alive in a manner that compels deep reflection on the part of readers of any age."

Alicia Britt Chole

"We would have been lost without it, wandering about and arriving nowhere in particular. It was the maps app that guided my family through our first international vacation. And it always began by identifying our current location and then offering us proven routes to our desired destinations. Recalibrate Your Life is like a maps app for a meaningful life. Chapter after chapter, Boa and Abel help readers assess their current location and move toward their desired destination through tools that are intelligent, practical, and doable. The exercises (which are refreshingly absent of fluff) would be of benefit to all who breathe. But for those in transition, in confusion, or simply in indecision, this book could be the God-magnetized compass you need to take your next step with intention and infuse your next season with meaning."

D. Michael Lindsay

"Ken Boa and Jenny Abel offer several tools throughout this book that inspire a paradigm shift in the way we think about our work and calling. From offering practical thoughts on retirement to stewarding our time, talent, treasure, truth, and relationships, Boa and Abel ground everything in the unfailing, everlasting truth of Scripture. There is great wisdom in this book for anyone."

Scott Sauls

"As we are told in Scripture, the Lord our God does not change. However, our lives are subject to change in ways that are both expected and unexpected. We make our plans, but the Lord directs our steps. For those who are searching for solid ground on which to plant their feet, especially during times of movement and transition, Recalibrate Your Life is a helpful, thoroughly scriptural field guide."

Walter C. Wright Jr.

"Grounded firmly in Scripture, Ken and Jenny present a compelling case for regular recalibration of our lives and provide practical tools and provocative questions to keep us focused on the grace of God, allowing God to create God's legacy with our lives. This is not only a retirement or end-of-life study guide. It is for all of life: a compass to keep our path true. This book makes you think about life, today and tomorrow."

Jordan Raynor

"Callings are seasonal, not static. If you sense God leading you into a new season, don't embark on the journey without Recalibrate Your Life."

Buck Jacobs

"Ken Boa and Jenny Abel's book is both a scholarly and a personal exhortation to the fact that we as Christians have only one life to live and one chance to live it with the eternal perspective and purpose that will matter at the end. Replete with tools and supporting glimpses into the lives of the authors and others who seek to live with eternally significant intentionality, it isn't, and is not intended to be, a quick fix but a real plan for living as a fruitful disciple."

James E. Taylor III

"Your life is a God-given pilgrimage. Are you walking it with meaning and purpose? Are you investing it wisely in the people God brings your way? Fellow pilgrims Ken Boa and Jenny Abel employ Scripture and experience-based wisdom to enable you to answer yes to these questions. And they offer practical tools to help you recalibrate when you choose a new road or take an unexpected path. No matter how far you've traveled along the trail of life, you'll benefit from this insightful and helpful guidebook. If you want to live well to the glory of God, this book is for you."

Russ Crosson

"We all leave a legacy. The decisions and actions we make and take today are forming that legacy and how we are remembered when we depart this earth. In this watershed book Recalibrate Your Life, Kenneth Boa and Jenny Abel provide a comprehensive and robust treatment of this topic. They provide ways to think about your legacy and also tools to help you make it a reality. Start today. Eternity is right around the corner for all of us."

Chip Ingram

"Ken Boa and Jenny Abel have done it again. At a time when the world has changed as never before, we have a unique opportunity to recalibrate our life, priorities, focus, and purpose; this book provides the wisdom and the way to do just that. I highly recommend it."

Editorial Reviews

12/05/2022

In this enlightening entry, Boa (Face to Face), president of Reflections Ministries, and Abel (A Guide to Practicing God’s Presence, coauthor) offer Christians tools to assess and realign their lives. They contend that in order to reorient one’s life, one must view it from an “eternal perspective” by recognizing the relative brevity of one’s time on Earth and thinking beyond “temporal” matters (which house to buy, which social group to join). This process can be intentional or spurred by an unanticipated life change, the authors note, but both involve considering long-term priorities and aligning one’s perspective to Godly principles. Bringing together scriptural insight, practical tools (such as taking a “recalibration retreat”) and examples from their own lives (including Boa’s multiple near-death experiences), the authors explain how their process promotes asking “important questions that we should have been asking all along.” With an approachable style, Boa and Abel provide sound advice for weathering challenging life moments and connecting with God; but despite the mention of varied transition points at which readers can reassess (starting a new job, getting married, etc.), frequently the discussions are in context of retirement and aging, implying this is more an option for those in midlife or older. Believers eager to take a fresh look at their lives will find this a welcome resource. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

"Callings are seasonal, not static. If you sense God leading you into a new season, don't embark on the journey without Recalibrate Your Life."

Jordan Raynor

"We would have been lost without it, wandering about and arriving nowhere in particular. It was the maps app that guided my family through our first international vacation. And it always began by identifying our current location and then offering us proven routes to our desired destinations. Recalibrate Your Life is like a maps app for a meaningful life. Chapter after chapter, Boa and Abel help readers assess their current location and move toward their desired destination through tools that are intelligent, practical, and doable. The exercises (which are refreshingly absent of fluff) would be of benefit to all who breathe. But for those in transition, in confusion, or simply in indecision, this book could be the God-magnetized compass you need to take your next step with intention and infuse your next season with meaning."

Alicia Britt Chole

"I, like so many others, find books about life purpose irresistible. Purpose plus me is a compelling combination. Ken Boa and Jenny Abel's book, Recalibrate Your Life, sets a new standard for the genre. Every chapter contains a comprehensive overview of God's perspective on the subject, and this—coupled with interesting stories, creative metaphors, and the wisdom of sages across time—brings the content alive in a manner that compels deep reflection on the part of readers of any age."

Pat MacMillan

"Ken Boa and Jenny Abel offer several tools throughout this book that inspire a paradigm shift in the way we think about our work and calling. From offering practical thoughts on retirement to stewarding our time, talent, treasure, truth, and relationships, Boa and Abel ground everything in the unfailing, everlasting truth of Scripture. There is great wisdom in this book for anyone."

D. Michael Lindsay

"As we are told in Scripture, the Lord our God does not change. However, our lives are subject to change in ways that are both expected and unexpected. We make our plans, but the Lord directs our steps. For those who are searching for solid ground on which to plant their feet, especially during times of movement and transition, Recalibrate Your Life is a helpful, thoroughly scriptural field guide."

Scott Sauls

"We all leave a legacy. The decisions and actions we make and take today are forming that legacy and how we are remembered when we depart this earth. In this watershed book Recalibrate Your Life, Kenneth Boa and Jenny Abel provide a comprehensive and robust treatment of this topic. They provide ways to think about your legacy and also tools to help you make it a reality. Start today. Eternity is right around the corner for all of us."

Russ Crosson

"Your life is a God-given pilgrimage. Are you walking it with meaning and purpose? Are you investing it wisely in the people God brings your way? Fellow pilgrims Ken Boa and Jenny Abel employ Scripture and experience-based wisdom to enable you to answer yes to these questions. And they offer practical tools to help you recalibrate when you choose a new road or take an unexpected path. No matter how far you've traveled along the trail of life, you'll benefit from this insightful and helpful guidebook. If you want to live well to the glory of God, this book is for you."

James E. Taylor III

"Ken Boa and Jenny Abel's book is both a scholarly and a personal exhortation to the fact that we as Christians have only one life to live and one chance to live it with the eternal perspective and purpose that will matter at the end. Replete with tools and supporting glimpses into the lives of the authors and others who seek to live with eternally significant intentionality, it isn't, and is not intended to be, a quick fix but a real plan for living as a fruitful disciple."

Buck Jacobs

"Ken Boa and Jenny Abel have done it again. At a time when the world has changed as never before, we have a unique opportunity to recalibrate our life, priorities, focus, and purpose; this book provides the wisdom and the way to do just that. I highly recommend it."

Chip Ingram

"Grounded firmly in Scripture, Ken and Jenny present a compelling case for regular recalibration of our lives and provide practical tools and provocative questions to keep us focused on the grace of God, allowing God to create God's legacy with our lives. This is not only a retirement or end-of-life study guide. It is for all of life: a compass to keep our path true. This book makes you think about life, today and tomorrow."

Walter C. Wright Jr.

"Bringing together scriptural insight, practical tools, and examples from their own lives (including Boa's multiple near-death experiences), . . . this is more an option for those in midlife or older. Believers eager to take a fresh look at their lives will find this a welcome resource."

--Publishers Weekly, November 2022

From the Publisher