We grow when we lose ourselves in service to others.

When love for others exceeds our love of self and we realize that this is the source of our greatest happiness.

Love, the greatest commandment.

We are all blessed with the same number of hours in a day.  What we do with this time is largely influenced by our perception of what is important and the priorities we set for ourselves. 

Ask yourself this question…What defines my success and is my definition of success based on my needs or my “wants and desires”? 

We need to have a home but do we need a bigger, more elaborate home? 

We all need to have a car but do we need to have a new car(s)?

How much is enough?

Of course, we all need a home and cars to function in today’s world and striving for financial success is not a bad thing as financial success can bring with it peace of mind and the opportunity to bless the lives of others.

The point I am trying to make is that if the pursuit of our “wants and desires” beyond that which we “need”  becomes our source of happiness, it would be well to re-evaluate what is truly important and how God defines our success.

If our focus is on accumulating material wealth and seeking personal pleasures we can become distracted by those pursuits and become “self-absorbed”.

What other things do we prioritize in our lives that distract us from becoming a greater version of ourselves?

How much time do we spend watching sports, television, movies, social media, etc?

We live in a world of distractions.  We and we alone choose where we place our priorities and how we define what is truly important or if we are focusing our time and energy relatively meaningless pursuits.

How often have we all said “I don’t have enough time”, when in fact we do have enough time but we choose to spend that time doing “other things”.

I am not saying that these are bad things but how many hours a day or week do we spend our time focusing on these things as opposed to taking time to exercise, read, meditate, pray and lose ourselves in service to others?

Were we too “busy” to call a friend to see how they are doing?  Were we too busy and distracted to be aware of that person who is lonely, depressed, mourning, ill or just in need of someone to care?  Were we too “distracted” to notice that person in need of a kind word, a compliment, an offer of friendship, an expression of love, or simply a hug?

How much of our time does it take to text someone to let them know we are thinking of them?  Better yet, how much time does it take to reach out with a phone call?  Not very much time. 

We are all busy doing what we perceive to be important at any given moment and time.  The question is, “what are we so busy doing”?

My challenge to myself and to those reading this thought is to evaluate my/our priorities and to re-direct our focus on those things that are truly important.  Those things that define who we are and how we will be remembered.

In my prayers I ask for guidance and inspiration to be made aware of someone who might be in need of or benefit from me reaching out to them.  Yesterday I sent a Thanksgiving message to someone who replied, “Thanks for being the only one who ever reaches out.  Love you.”  We never know how much a simple act of love and kindness will impact someone else.

The two greatest commandments are, “Thou shalt  to love the Lord with all of your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

Let’s re-think and realign our priorities with this as the measure of our success in this life.

Because I care…