“Thank you for your service.” This is a phrase usually reserved for military veterans and first responders who live a life that is dedicated to helping others through a sense of duty. –but what about the rest of us? Are we without duty? Shouldn’t we all be dedicated to a life of Service to Others?
Nowadays we are surrounded 24/7 by messaging that pushes service-to-self lifestyle choices that encourage us to put ourselves first, while saying tough-luck to the other guy. “How can I get ahead?” “How does this benefit me?” “How does this make me look?” –me, me, me… Whether it's at work or at play, we have become a society that is so “me”-focused and narcissistic that unity, cooperation and the concept of harmonious community is ceasing to exist before our very eyes.
What happened? When did we all become frenemies, and rivals? Is this partly the “selfies” fault? Once that camera flipped around, did our personal value system get flipped too? Now, there is nothing wrong with taking photos or selfies, but when we become obsessed with them that's different. --and we must ask, have we as a society let ourselves become so selfie-obsessed and self-involved that we are desensitized to the needs of those around us, even our own families in some cases? Are we addicted to selfishness? Is it also a combination of greed, insecurity, and the spirit of competition taking over? These negative behaviors and selfish attributes can be observed in the majority of people today, and even in those who call themselves “leaders” or “influencers.” So, how do we fix this mindset? How do we flip the focus from striving to make ourselves seem superior, wealthy or rich and famous to instead placing value on doing our part to genuinely make the community a better place through selflessness and Service to Others?
Whether it's giving of your time, talent or your resources, selflessness is living in Service to Others without the expectation of reciprocation, praise or reward. Living in a manner that is selfless and harmless is how we overcome selfish or egotistical habits, and cultivate a lifestyle that benefits our community and society as a whole, not only ourselves. True selflessness is also devoid of virtue signaling and bragging. We see this a lot online, in business and in politics where individuals will exploit and expose those who are truly in need for the purposes of content creation, and concocting or manipulating public opinion. I’ve been guilty of this myself. Whether it was going on a mission trip or donating clothes to storm relief, there was a time in my life where I made sure I got a postable picture to prove my service, collect likes and make myself look a certain way. –and that is not true service. That is service with an agenda attached. When we broadcast the charitable deeds we’ve done with the intention of gaining accolades or acclaim in public or on social media we are actually being steered by our negative-ego and by Dark forces, and allowing gestures of Goodness to become tainted. A genuine Service to Others mindset acts without the desire or need to be noticed, and is happy to help even when there are no cameras or onlookers around.
When we are in Service to Others, and refuse to allow our negative-ego to tag along, we allow God to truly work through us, and become a powerful vessel for Love and Goodness that brings about positive change. As we learn to do this, selflessly, we attract to ourselves gifts and abundance directly from Godsource so that we can continue to be of service and grow our sphere of influence. As the saying goes, “life gives to the giver, and takes from the taker.”
These God given gifts aren’t always in the form of money or material resources, but can also be increased wellness, patience, peacefulness, and fulfillment which are indeed of great value, and should be recognized as precious treasures, too.
As the state of society stands, being in Service to Others can sometimes seem like an extremely daunting and sometimes lonely life path to take, especially when we regularly see individuals who exhibit blatant service-to-self behavior being exhaled, glamorized and materialistically enriched, but please understand that this is being done by design to Darken our spirits, and discourage us from living in alignment with Goodness (Godliness). It's important to remember that just like a boomerang, whatever quality of energy we put out will come back to us one way or another. Even though we rarely see people post when they receive their comeuppance, karmically, everything must be accounted for, and this is a function of Universal Law that can not be escaped.
Regardless of the selfish behavior we may see others displaying, we should make a pointed effort to extend selflessness and Love to everyone we come into contact with while understanding that serving others doesn’t have to be in monetary or material form. Service also isn’t something regulated to specific service days or mission trips. Everyday is a service day, and your life is your mission trip because Service to Others can be as simple as putting down your phone, and taking time to really listen to what someone has to say, giving them your undivided attention and responding with heartfelt care and consideration.
When we learn to be of service as a lifestyle while continuing to question the motivations behind our actions, this also allows us to pinpoint when our negative-ego is still in control, and we can better see where we need to place healing attention onto ourselves. This combination of service and a heightened sense of self-awareness leads to personal growth and community betterment simultaneously. When we commit to serve others, when we accept the mission, everyone wins.
As we dedicate ourselves to developing a mindset that values and understands the importance of service, we in turn spark others to do the same. Quietly, respectfully and consistently, this is how we are meant to lead. –not by boastfulness of words, but by actionable example.
While we should not expect recognition, when you do witness someone genuinely being of service, please take a moment to sincerely thank them. Acknowledging others, and showing gratitude for their time and good works can in itself be a service too, as a kind word of encouragement and a little motivation to keep going has the power to create more and more positivity in favor of Love and the Light of God.
May you find happiness in helping,
-Mallory
