Ball, Steak, Man - Entry 1

I'm working my way through a book I got a year or so ago for Christmas called "How to hit a curve ball, grill the perfect steak and become a real man." I'm going to post all the interesting quotes and thoughts that come to mind while I work through it.

So far today one of the big quotes that has stuck out to me is:

"We're all struggling to figure ourselves out. We're afraid to expose our souls to those who might judge us, and at the same time, we desperately need help to guide us on this journey. If we're not careful, we might find ourselves with everything this world has to offer and later find we have lost ourselves in the clutter."

I don't remember the exact words my pastor used in one of his books but it went something like this: We go about life trying to be someone we think people want us to be. We do whatever we can to get the attention of the people that we want to impress. We say the things we think they want to hear and wear clothes to fit the part. We eventually realize they weren't listening or looking in the first place. We lose ourselves in the journey of trying to impress people who aren't even looking in our direction.

Someone once said "My greatest fear in life is to be successful in things that don't matter." I don't remember who said/wrote it, but it is a dreadful thought. I could live my entire life and aspire to be the greatest at something and when I died it would all be for nothing. Can you imagine the feeling? All the nights spent at the office, missed sporting events, and business calls on family vacations...all for nothing.

I'm learning that it doesn't matter so much whether I'm the most financially successful person in the world. It doesn't matter if I have my student loans paid off in the next few years (which will seriously probably not happen until I'm my parents age...yes dad...I'm saying you're old). I don't need money, power or success to be someone.

When I leave this earth I want to be known as a man that loved God, loved his family and loved those around him. I want to know that I gave everything of myself to God and did whatever it took to share the love that I have experienced from Him with others. If I am able to make a positive impact on just one person's life it will make it all worth it.