As our world seems to be erupting with chaos and violence, I cannot help but think those who are so intent on destruction are doing so with an “I am the center” mindset.
Unfortunately, even though we may not want to believe or admit it, we all suffer from the same problem. We are all the center of our world.
Because this is true, we often struggle to deal with anyone or anything we do not agree with. There are those who are cultivating and using this mindset to manipulate well intending people to pursue lines of thought they never considered and to do things they would not normally do.
This is possible because, an “I am the Center” attitude is easy to provoke.
Why? Once again, it is because it is all about me. How I feel, what I think and how I am perceived are always at the forefront of most of our thinking. Sure, there are times we may consider others. But even then, we are most likely concerned with how they fit in to our lives or plans.
Because of this, we may find living itself to be a challenge since many times things do not align with our way of thinking or end up the way we had hoped.
Imagine how different our world would be if we cared more about how our thoughts and actions affected others than the affect others are having on us? The fact is life can be overwhelming simply because we cannot get over ourselves long enough to consider anything else.
Ironically, there are those who are arguing others have more and this is not fair. What makes it seem unfair is the belief I should have more. The willingness to give in to this desire is where we find ourselves today. Selfishly protesting about perceived inequities is really protesting against others; all for the betterment of ourselves.
This is a universal problem and Jesus spoke directly about this issue when he was asked which is the greatest command? In Matthew 12:30-31, He answered, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself.”
You see, if we are going to overcome our natural desire to be in the center, we are going to have to replace ourselves with God and others. When we do the outflow will be love. Then, the disparities we feel exists in this world will give way to the caring we each must have for and give to each other.
What if we were able to replace the “I am the center” perspective with a “you are the center” one. Would this work? Would our world be a better place? We will never know if we never try.
Who knows, it might just be good for us too. Besides, it is really all about us anyway, isn’t it?
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