What is the size of your world?

 The size of your world can vary from large to small depending on what you are doing, but over all what perspective do you see the world from?  

Are you watching from the 5th floor or are you at ground level? 

One misconception I hear is that you have to look out for number one.  In fact one of my old sayings was, “You have to look out for number one because if you don’t no one else will.”  and that is the way I lived my life.  I remember one of my children when about 3 or 4 years old, was always giving the toys away to other kids.  I reprimanded and explained - “if you give them away there will be nothing left for you.” It wasn’t that there weren’t enough toys, the aunts, grandparents and “Santa” always gave too much. We were over run with “stuff”. My world was small, a ground floor perception, and I was transferring it to my child. Ya, sad right....

Don’t do anything for selfish purposes, but with humility think of others as better than yourselves. 4 Instead of each person watching out for their own good, watch out for what is better for others. Philippians 2:3-4 CEB

Later when I truly surrendered all of myself to God my world grew too. I then had a 5th floor perspective of the world.  I realized that it wasn’t God himself  or just God’s purpose for “me” alone I should be seeking, but God’s purpose for us all.  

Summing up: Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that’s your job, to bless. You’ll be a blessing and also get a blessing.       1 Peter 3:8-9 MSG

God wants us to love, care and give to others. It takes empathy and mercy to succeed.  These traits may not come naturally to you, but they can be learned.  I look back at that past situation and wonder- who was the child and who was the adult?  God was trying to teach through my child at that time, but I wasn’t listening. I was caught up in my selfish, all about me perspective.

My pastor reminded me in his weekend sermon that : Self righteousness is worse than unrighteousness. 

Bridges could’ve been burned by my selfish, self righteous ways, but fortunately my family and friends stayed with me in spite of myself and that ground floor view.  So glad God got a hold of me, not only can I feel better by thinking of others, but I could have ended up on an episode of  Hoarders: Buried Alive, or then again, American Pickers wouldn't have been so bad....