Have you ever thought about when you were at your best over the course of your life? It is definitely a subjective question, revolving around your concept of what best means. For some people, particularly if they are facing various degrees of physical degradation, may think back to their mid-twenties, when their bodies were strong and flexible, able to accomplish nearly any athletic endeavor. For some who find their minds faltering, they may think back to their college days when they could absorb nearly any volume of information, or even through their thirties as they were able to draw from those stores of knowledge and apply them wisely. Others may think to a time when they were at the peak of their careers, in their fifties or early sixties, drawing from decades of experience to help navigate the business world.
If these are your measuring sticks for your life, it can get a bit depressing when you have passed those points and find yourself on the downward slide. These measures are entirely self-centered, deriving their value from what you are personally able to do, and ascribing a sense of self-worth to your own accomplishments. Frankly, if those are the most important factors in your understanding of what it means to be at your best, it is hard to imagine how you won’t become bitter and withdrawn as the natural aging process robs you of those things.
But what if there were some other metrics involved, measuring not so much how you perform against others, but focusing instead on how you interact with others? Whereas your physical and cognitive abilities will degrade, there are other factors that can continue to grow stronger and better as you age, making an impact on those around you. And in many cases, these areas are strengthened when the aforementioned metrics weaken, precisely because it becomes easier to shift our focus from ourselves to others. Measures like how well you love others, the joy you share with others, how patient you are, how kind you are, how gentle you are with others, and your willingness to share and pour into others, lifting them up.
I’m guessing that most people reading this are on the downward side of their physical and cognitive peaks, but I want to encourage you to let go of those glory days and realize instead that your best is yet to come. Shift your focus from self to others, and pour into their lives out of a glad and joyful heart. Love a little more today. Be kinder today than you were yesterday. Be more patient with others today than ever before. Simply being a peaceful haven for someone going through a storm can change someone’s life in ways that could last for decades.
Ultimately, when our idea of best is focused on self-performance, then the end measure of success is based upon the performance of one person. However, when our idea of best shifts to our ability to pour into others, the end measure of the success of our lives will incorporate the performance of all those other lives that we impacted. And since we can lovingly encourage people until the end of our lives, we can live out our lives with purpose, long after our physical and cognitive peaks have passed. It may just be that your best days are still ahead of you. Peace and blessings – Pastor Aaron