intention

I just received an email in an exchange I've been having with another employee at the university where I'm teaching.  This employee signs his messages "Shalom" -- peace.  I tend to sign quite a bit of the email I send to students with "Blessings," given that it's a Christian university and I, well, want to extend my blessing to them, but I'm not sure I always do this with intentionality.  My correspondent's choice to sign "Shalom" seems intentional, and it spurred me toward thinking about intention.

I am at a point in my life where I feel as though I live in the realms of reaction and dependence.  I struggle with feeling like important aspects of my life are out of my control.  Certainly many exceptions could be drawn to this statement, but intellectual argument is no match for felt experience.  What would it mean for me to be intentional?  What does intentionality look like for me?

I do encounter real boundaries.  Each of us does, in our own ways and our own distinctive situations.  We are not universal actors, always capable of directing the future of our lives through sheer willpower.  I suspect that is one of the more damaging lies of the modern world.  Limits do not, however, mean powerlessness.  Within our boundaries we can act with intention -- and intentionality can alter those boundaries in important ways, both perceived and actual.

I don't know that I have a conclusion to state.  This reflection is more of a question to myself than a reasoned analysis.  It is, however, a question I hope to ponder during this time of the Christian calendar so devoted to mindful attention toward our walk with Christ.