Howtoencourage

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

ENCOURAGEMENT TO INSPIRE

Many want to impress, but few want to inspire or encourage. I love how Constance Rhodes puts it, “The trouble with seeking to impress is that it requires so little of our heart and soul. But to inspire (encourage)…that must be the greatest of accomplishments, for inspiring (encouraging) others allows us to be a part of something so much bigger than ourselves.”

Recently a friend of mine in her seventies greatly inspired me when I saw that the most important thing she did was give her life away in serving others. Her simple life-statement gave me something to aim for, a goal worthy of pursuit.

Constance says, “When considering the big picture of life, it’s important that we ask ourselves, ‘Do I want to seek to impress or live to inspire?’ How we answer that question will define how we live. If we seek to impress, then we will continue to feel empty despite each new accomplishment. The increasing importance we place on our material possessions, appearance and successes will only serve to bind us up further and further.”

But when we refuse to be defined by external things and we understand that our insides are more important than the outside, our focus changes. We are then free to use our energy to encourage and love others, because we know our value is in who we are, not how we look.

Who can you encourage or inspire by your life today?

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