My family is moving, so I have been packing many boxes lately. This involves going through all my stuff, which is a lot. The other day I found a journal I had to use for an English class in sixth grade. One of the entries I found was about making a living versus making a life. For a sixth grader, I thought my words were profound. Here’s what I had to say on the matter:
“Making a living is when you just earn money because you have to or because you want to. Making a life is when you’re serving someone because you want to. When all you do is make a living, you miss the opportunity to give to others. When you give to people it makes you feel special and happy because you know you’re caring for someone. “
When I think back to who I was in sixth grade, I usually have memories that make me cringe. I always felt that I was a big goofball with a couple of screws loose. After reading this, I see that maybe I was a little more put together than I thought. What I wrote struck a chord with me.
I started to examine my life and even the lives of those around me. Are we so focused on making a living that we forget to make a life? How often are we looking for opportunities to serve others? Are we only doing things that will promote our careers and ourselves, or are we actively involved in helping others?
The thing is, if all you focus on is making a living and furthering your career, I have a bad feeling you will end up feeling empty inside; whereas, making a life and striving to encourage others will make you feel so great! The Bible tells us that we are to help those who are less fortunate, but on an even greater scale, we are to love others, as we would want them to love us. If you were desolate and in need of help, would you want someone to reach out to you? What if you were in need and someone you were close to decided to do something to promote his career and meet his own needs instead of helping you? Would you feel hurt by this? I definitely would! Now, we have to examine our own lives. Are we doing that very thing? Are we ignoring those in need around us?
The need I’m talking about goes far beyond financial and physical need. I’m also talking about emotional needs. There are people out there who are hurting. Some of those who are hurting could be right under your nose. Are we looking past our own needs and looking at the needs of others? If I had to answer this honestly, I don’t think I could say that I am. Lately, I’ve been very worried about my own life. I have been so caught up in all that’s going on in my life that I’ve forgotten to look right in front of me. Many people I’m close with may be hurting, and I am doing nothing about it. That’s got to change.
It’s time to stop focusing on our own needs and reach out to the broken ones around us. Let’s pray and ask God to open our eyes to those who are in need of our help. Then, let’s act. Simply being aware of their need isn’t enough.
