Right before you die, you’ll realize this whole life was about loving people. And you watched too much television. – Donald Miller

The first time I read that I literally laughed out loud. It wasn’t so much that the author poignantly stated what almost any of us know deep down but that he said or rather tweeted it in the exact moment that I was in need of being reminded.  Coincidence? I think not.

It’s not all that difficult to notice society rampantly engrossed in their own world. Everything is constantly about me – “what can you do for me?”, “what’s in it for me?”, “when’s my turn?”, “what about me?”, “I want it done my way”, “I don’t feel like it” and I’m not happy anymore” — I constantly catch myself muttering under my breath “there goes another example of narcissism at its finest”. And don’t even get me started with reality shows, I think they’re the biggest example of our deplorable need to be entertained. But truth be told, I too am guilty of this on a daily basis.

Life has a funny way of getting you off course for just a minute and then driving you deep into selfish ambition. And to be clear, Ambition is not bad. In fact, we all need it to keep motivated, to keep dreaming, and to keep moving forward. But when what drives us starts to deteriorate our inner man and causes us to loose sight of what’s truly important, then we can be certain we’ve gotten lost along the way.

It’s in those moments that we become easily irritated, disappointment affects us harder and impatience weakens our resolve, we loose the desire to keep trying and then we end up hurting those around us. We distance ourselves from people who know us because we don’t want to hear it.  Our silent offended hearts unchecked turn into rage. And we begin to respond with a casual, “why do I even bother”? ….Ever been there?

That is why life as we know it has always been and will always be about — relationships/people. We were never meant to do life on our own, to exist for ourselves, or to stand alone in battle.

“The people we do life with have a significant impact on both our relationship with God and also our future.” – Brian Houston

Inward focus only results in outward frustration. You won’t find much in you, except what you already know but when you choose to pay attention and meet the needs of those around you, you’ll see a side to you that you’ve never known.

I once heard someone preach that “the most successful people in life are the ones who can keep relationships the longest”. I’m not exactly sure why but till now those words resonate in my spirit. If I don’t have any gift nor talent to offer, I know at least that in this life, I can love on others – I can show interest in their thoughts and ideas, I can invest in a friendship, I can listen, I can lend a hand, I can encourage, I can give a hug …. and I can choose to bother when all others choose to walk away.

It’s the little things that say a lot about a person and a relationship. So be kind to the ones you do life with… and be kind to those you may encounter today, cos all of us never quite know where it all might lead. – Bobbie Houston