From Purpose to Promise Driven Life: A Prescription for Making the Difference You Were Born to Make

 MATURITY       

Compassion is one of the great emotions humans have been gifted with. It is more than sympathy which is pure feeling.  And, it is more than just pure action with no feeling.

Compassion is a combination of sympathy plus action.  It is having such a strong feeling about something that is going on with someone that you take action to benefit that someone.  Jesus was often noted to feel compassion for the people who crowded around Him.  This compassion drove him to take actions designed to help.       

Compassion is always directed towards others.  It’s ‘other’ centered and focused.  And, as such, is a very important characteristic of ‘Promise Driven’ life.       

People who are mature can care for themselves and willingly contribute to the care of others.

MATURITY is able to stand on its own while it constantly looks for others to pick up and support. 

MATURITY feels for people and moves to provide them the help they need.                   

When you feel sympathy for somebody, that’s it.                 

When you feel compassion for somebody you feel  sympathy and you take action to help.   

 ’Promise Driven’ people are mature.  They can take care of themselves. And beyond that, they are always involved in trying to help others do the same.       

In this context, it’s important to understand that one of the hallmarks of immaturity is self-centeredness. 

Immature people are virtually always talking about, thinking about, worried about themselves and their issues, challenges and problems.  This is the case in both good times and not so good times.       

The thing that remains constant for the immature is self focus.  My way,  my thing, my idea, my project, my time, my suggestion all represent what may be frequently heard from the mouth of the immature.      

Be mature. Be compassionate.  Be other-entered and focused.  

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