The purpose of life is a life of purpose. -- Robert Byrne
Our inherent survival instinct calls for foundational selfishness. Self-preservation seeks to prevent harm or death. It is considered a basic instinct in most organisms. It becomes our go-to in times of crisis and is a natural tendency even in times of calm. We trained ourselves to live for ourselves. Occasionally, with a selfish motive, we “acted” selfless. Saving or serving the other guy was unnatural, so we seldom shared what we possessed, including assets, energy, or time.
Self-serving became our inner rhythm, driving our thoughts, decisions, and actions. This beat strengthened as we aged. We found fulfillment, though always fleeting, in possessions and personal pleasures. Our purpose was to accumulate more, to attain and retain what we thought should rightfully be ours.
We started with survival and morphed it into indulgence. Essential became excess. We took delight to the heights of danger. For us, we abused privilege to the point of pain. We came to a place where we could no longer effectively fill our cups without major spillage. How much more could we consume to find the ever-elusive purpose in our lives?
Serving is a superpower.
If selfishness is the root of sin, then selflessness is the prescription for peace.
This is our experience, our story; we have found significance in serving others above ourselves. We've opened our eyes to the fact that Jesus lived to serve, not to be served. We've taken his example, and, to the best of our ability, we attempt to act according to this standard, even when it feels uncomfortable or unnatural.
We have found that through our path in life, encounters, relationships, natural passions, and skills acquired along the way, combined with a focus on service, we inch closer to a purpose we can buy into.
These powerful lessons we have accumulated over years of listening and learning. Today, we tend to say yes when our brains initially say no, as a yes usually plays out to benefit what we see as God's plan.
We see now that we were blessed to be a blessing. A blessing that God delivers through us, not of us. Because we say yes for the benefit of others, we can find fulfillment that it is for His purpose that we walk our purpose. It never ceases to amaze us how things work out – when we are giving, not taking.
May we find new ways to serve today.
Be blessed!
Thoughts and ideas for this blog post were taken and built upon from asweunderstandhim.coffee podcast “Rooted Week 6 "How can I make the most of my life? - Part 1" with Matt The podcast dropped on 9/17/2023. Click here to hear the podcast.
Photo by Kate Remmer on Unsplash
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