Outward Focused Living

Listen: “Do Something” by Matthew West

Mental health is a tricky balance between attention to your own needs and issues and living a generous life of love and service towards others. I have been in the recovery community for a couple of years, and this is a balance that is taught over and over again. Stated simply: If you are not sober and healthy, you will never be any good to anyone else. Recovery is a selfish program. On the flip side, once you are sober you have to give it away. You keep your sobriety by serving others.

I think this is true for all humanity, whether you are in recovery or not. (And most everyone needs recovery from something.) Generosity and service to others is a vital part of emotional and spiritual health. In fact, many studies have been conducted on the brain as it relates to generosity. The results are fascinating—giving is good for your health. (See “Why Giving is Good for Your Health,” www.health.clevelandclinic.org.)

This is no surprise. Ancient wisdom from all the faith traditions has emphasized generosity as an important lifestyle. One of my favorite proverbs from the Hebrew Bible is Proverbs 11:25: “The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed” (NLT). Jesus taught a similar principle: “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you” (Luke 6:38; NLT).

All of us have resources to give. Many times people only think of money, but money is just one resource. In addition to money, we all have time and talents from which we can give as well. One way to live a generous, outward focused life is to do an inventory of your resources and consider how you can invest in others generously with your resources.

 Invest your time. Volunteering your time to serve others is an act of generosity. You can do this with strangers or people who are close friends and colleagues. I like to think through the lens of The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman. Spend some quality time with someone by practicing good listening skills and asking great questions. Reach out and touch someone—everybody needs a post-pandemic hug! Serve others through acts of kindness. Show God’s love in practical ways. Share a word of affirmation with someone. Tell them how much you appreciate them or compliment them on one of their best qualities.

Invest your talents. Everyone has some talents. It might be fixing a car, teaching inspirational content, administrative skills, creativity, social media savvy, leadership skills, building new relationships, or helping gifts. Think about serving through communities or small groups in which you are involved like sport teams, faith-based communities, recovery groups, or charity organizations. Through blogs, podcasting, events, pastoral care, and teaching, I am seeking to use my people skills, teaching skills, and leadership skills to ignite spiritual growth and transformation in people. This is why I have founded Spirituality Adventures.

Invest your money. Giving gifts is one of the five love languages. I know some people who are really good at giving small, thoughtful gifts to people. I was the recipient of many thoughtful gifts when I was pastoring a church. I was always amazed at how many thoughtful ways people would give. I have always been generous with whatever money I had. Since I was sixteen years old, I have always given more the ten percent of my income to church and other charities. Also, when I founded Vineyard Church, I gave away over ten percent of our church resources to other charities and partnerships. I’ve always challenged business owners to give out of their personal resources and their business resources. I still practice generosity in this way. If you are reading this blog, I greatly appreciate it. Please consider making Spirituality Adventuresa part of your charitable giving. Go to the support page on the website and sign up for a monthly contribution. Thanks for your support.

Shalom

©realfredherron, 2021