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Missing Morals: Selflessness
February 16, 2013
By Jessica Root
Intern Reporter for the Tribune
intern@lstribune.net
What if you received a call from a friend in desperate need of help? What if it wasn’t a friend, but the friend of a friend? What if you didn’t even know the person in need? Although it means sacrificing your time, sometimes for a complete stranger, you shouldn’t hesitate to drop what you’re doing, jump in the car and speed to his or her side.
Selflessness only varies a few letters from selfishness, but those words are a world away in meaning. We all like to think we have what it takes to be selfless when the time comes, but selfishness is ingrained in every fiber of our being. Most people say that’s just the way we’re born – me, me, me. It’s all about ME.
How long does it take for someone to realize it’s NOT all about them? Well, that varies. There’s a defining moment in all of our lives where we realize we’re each one individual piece of God’s giant puzzle.
He’s always there for us, and He sees exactly how it all fits together, regardless of how blind we may be to our own destiny. We owe it to Him to open our hearts to give and receive His Awesome Love.
Luke 6:35 says, “But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for He is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.”
When God created Adam, Adam was alone. Upon this realization, God created Eve, and we all know what happened from there. Where there’s good, there is evil, and although good always triumphs, evil still takes hold of our fragile lives.
We’re not meant to be alone; we never were. We’re meant to love and be loved selflessly.
We all know the State Farm catchphrase, “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.” Neighbors don’t always have to be living in the house next door for us to lend a helping hand; we are all neighbors here in Lee’s Summit. It’s time we start being “good” neighbors.
This week, do something for someone else. Opportunities to practice our selflessness are often overlooked. It’s easy to get caught up in our own lives, but if we step outside of our own selfish universes, we’ll realize we’re all in the same boat.
Every person is trying to make their mark in the world, selfishly hoping to be remembered. Selfishness may get you noticed negatively by the masses, but just one selfless act for one person is forever a positive piece of both your heart and theirs. Less is more, after all.
Each person has a daily battle to fight, and wouldn’t it be nice if they knew they had an entire city on their side?
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