Listen and Learn

Welcome to Service – The Action Form of Love

As you may have read in my last post, my wife and I just returned from a week’s vacation. You may also know from previous posts that my mama passed away six months ago today.

Mama had been homebound for many years, and my father stayed by her side until the end of her mortal life. He sacrificed a lot in doing so. He passed up opportunities to go places, visit people and just get out of the house because he didn’t want to leave her alone.

Because of his sacrifice and dedication, my wife and I decided we’d invite dad to go with us on our trip to California. It took him awhile to make up his mind that it was okay to get away from his troubles and relax, but he finally did make up his mind.

I learned a lot about dad on this trip. When it was my turn to drive, he’d sit in the front passenger seat and tell me all sorts of stories. I learned much about dad as a child, as a young man and as a sailor in World War II. It was an experience I’ll always cherish.

I wonder how things would have turned out under different circumstances. I wonder what I would have missed if I had chosen to plug in my MP3 player or crank up the radio rather than just sit and listen to dad talk.

I would have missed many nuggets of fatherly wisdom, and plain old fun stories.

So, here’s your challenge today:

Someone needs to talk. Today, your challenge is to listen.

Whether they have anything profound or groundbreaking to say doesn’t matter.

Listen.

Just listen.

Let them know you’re listening. Encourage them to talk more. Ask questions. Prod them for details. Really try to understand and appreciate what they’re telling you.

That’s it. That’s the challenge for today.

Thank you for listening – or rather, reading. Thank you for being willing to pass on my challenges and for inviting others to come and read.

And thank you especially for remembering that Service is The Action Form of Love.

James

Easy as 1-2-3

Welcome to Service is The Action Form of Love Blog

If you’ve read my past postings (see below and to your right for the links), you know that the kind of service I advocate is small and simple. A small and simple act of service (or random act of kindness, if you will) can make a big impact in someone’s day and life.
So, today, I want to just highlight three things you can do to serve today.

Ready?

Here’s your challenge (see if you can do all three, but don’t feel bad if you can’t):

1. Offer to let someone vent to you. Don’t try to solve it, just listen with empathy.

2. Call someone in your family or circle of friends and say “I love you”.

3. Send an email or written note that just says “Thank you”.


That’s all there is to it!

I know you can do it. How do I know? Because I know you care.

Thanks for reading today’s post. Thanks for being willing to accept the challenge and to pass it on. Thanks for being you!

And, thanks for remembering that Service is The Action Form of Love.

James

Heart of Hearing

Welcome to Tuesday!

Yesterday’s challenge was about judging others.

Something I’ve found that helps me avoid judging someone in a negative way is to both listen and hear what they’re trying to tell me.

To do this effectively, I’ve found, I can’t just listen with my ears. I have to listen with my heart as well. Sometimes, I get my emotions involved – the good ones.

I try to look past whatever physical obstacles there may be, like the exterior of the person trying to make me understand. Sadly, I’m human and I sometimes let people’s rough or otherwise unusual exterior get in the way of hearing and understanding their needs.

I usually find I do better when I try to “hear between the lines”. This helps me more easily pick up the real meaning of what someone is trying to tell me.

We often speak – and hear – in contradictions. This isn’t always a bad thing, but it can lead to miscommunication and missed messages.

So, here’s your challenge for today.

When someone is trying to get you to really hear them, look past their physical exterior and try to listen with your heart. Don’t cut them off. Don’t anticipate what they’re going to say next (or what you want to say next, for that matter).

Really listen.

And then do all you can to respond with love, caring and positivity. Make them glad they came to you.

Thank you for reading and accepting today’s challenge. I appreciate the time you take to really hear my message with your heart.

Truly, Service is the Action form of Love.

James

Judging

Welcome to Monday!

For many of us, getting through the day without judging others without cause and complete information is near impossible.

I’m constantly surprised at how often I am willing to judge others by their words and actual deeds (results) when I want to be judged by my good intentions.

I suspect you may feel the same way.

So, here’s your challenge for today:

Put yourself in someone else’s shoes.

When you’re tempted to think the worst, ask yourself “how can I look at this person or situation in a less judgmental light?”

Try and see the situation from the other person’s point of view – then act accordingly.

That’s all there is to it.

Thank you for reading and accepting today’s challenge. Thank you also for being willing to pass it on, for stumbling it, digging it, retweeting it and forwarding it to others.

I appreciate you.

Remember, Service is the Action form of Love.

James