Yesterday I posted about my friend Elizabeth’s Red Car Theory Story. Confession time – my mind was reeling so much about how it related to my book, I glossed over the very fine point of her story. The sad truth is, Elizabeth’s main point also relates but I’m not going there right now. Just what was her point? If you have yet to read her post, do so now – it is well worth the effort.
As I see it, she is saying we need to shake off our own self-absorption and start looking at what we can do for others. Specifically, she relates to “hero opportunities”. She contrasts a meme stating most of us only have a few such hero opportunities in our lifetime. Elizabeth states we have far more than a few , “many more” she says. If I may take this thought a bit further I’ll it really depends on how one defines a “hero”.
Personally, I’m entirely uncomfortable with the term. A few years ago it was common for someone to say “you are my hero”. Even today people experience “hero worship”. Often these “heroes” are simply well-known celebrities. Whether they’ve ever done anything most would call heroic is neither here nor there. When it comes to worship, my own scope is very limited. So what is a “hero”? A quick search on the internet offers this definition:
So my question is “admired” by whom? Secondly – what sort of courage? Then, what outstanding achievements? Finally, what noble qualities? How one articulates a hero depends on how they answer such questions – assuming this definition is acceptable. How about dispensing with the “hero concept” another way and instead paint a far broader swath? Who needs “heroes” anyway? Then instead of looking for “hero opportunities” we can simply seek out opportunities to do good. The benefits are far reaching and, even more so than “hero opportunities”, opportunities to do good are bountiful. In fact we can seek those out every time we come in contact with another person. Isn’t that something?
As a Christian, all of this is part of “putting on the new man” and renewing one’s mind. (I contend both are essentially the same, though there is more to the new man than just a renewed mind.) We are instructed to walk in love and walk in the spirit – these may be seen as two sides of the same coin. God is love and God is a Spirit. Once we move past the world’s warped idea of love, we might be able to see the truth about it. Love is not a feeling but love is action. Thus, Elizabeth’s actions in her story were acts of love. There wasn’t anything romantic about it – she saw someone in need and did what needed to be done. Such was as purely an act of love as one can perform. She wasn’t looking for anything in return. She wasn’t seeking accolades. She did what she determined was the right thing to do. Was her act heroic? I should say so but her heroism is besides the point.
Now here I will take a moment to offer a blatant, if wussy pitch for my book “Your Manifest Purpose.” All that sort of stuff is in there and more. You will learn how to naturally look outside yourself. Even better, you’ll learn how God can heighten your awareness and even see things you could not see with your five senses. You’ll learn to train your mind to see far more truth than you ever thought possible. As you learn to renew your mind, you’ll find yourself naturally seeking opportunities to do good more and more. That’s all I’ll say. Feel free to subscribe below. You’ll not only get a first look at insights such as this as God reveals them to me – insights that are either expounded upon in the book or expanded upon right here, but you’ll get a discount when it becomes available for pre-order. Of course you are in no way obligated to buy the book when available. You may decide it is just not for you. That’s okay too.
God bless,
Andy
