One thing I’ve learned over the years is this:
Life comes easily for no one.
I’m not sure why some of us think that some have it easy. Sure, things that come naturally to people. Coffee drinking and chocolate eating come pretty naturally to me, and I’m great at it, too. Haha!! Some would say that my work comes naturally to me. Other mums tell me how great they think it is that I get to work from home, how easy it must be (every working from home mother just sighed, right?).
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When you’re on the outside looking in, it's easy to think others have it better and easier than you. It almost helps us make peace with our inner level of complacency. I do it all the time: “It’s OK, for them, they’ve got it made. They don’t face the same challenges I do. It’s not as hard for them as it is for me.” It’s this attitude that causes us to horde up goodness for ourselves. We quit sharing, and even begin taking, because, after all, it’s not fair that others have more than me.
We must reject this kind of thinking. It builds walls, creates stale hearts, and can lead to greed, destructive selfishness, and violence.
In business, life, love, and family, this statement is true:
“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about.” (Rev. John Watson.)
It’s not, in fact, easier for anyone else. Life is life is life is life. All God asks of us is that we steward our own well. No comparison. No walls. Plenty of sharing, plenty of bridges.
There are people who are fighting battles right before our eyes: poverty, racism, abuse, neglect, marginalization, disease, the refugee crisis… We need to realize that most of us who claim to have it hard, in fact, have more than we need, and could do more to help others. Helping is an antidote for comparison and selfishness. Right when we think life has ripped us off, we should roll up our sleeves, pick up the phone, write a letter, make a donation, take a trip… help someone.
Pema Chödrön said:
“We work on ourselves in order to help others, and we help others in order to work on ourselves.”
Paul reminded his friends that Jesus said: “You’re far happier giving than getting.” (Acts 20:35 MSG).
So maybe, whether you’re on the giving or receiving end of this statement, you should just keep giving. Keep doing your work, the world needs it, and your challenges do not go unseen or unheard. And if you think
others have it easier than you? Read the news, go for a walk around your neighborhood, visit the hospice of a hospital, and then do yourself and your heart some good and give.
You’ll be far happier giving than comparing.
Written by Liz Milani
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