How To Live A More Meaningful Life

At one point or another we all struggle to determine what makes our life meaningful.

Is it a fancy car? The biggest home we can afford? Or the prettiest wife on our arm?

In the end, those things won’t leave you feeling fulfilled and satisfied. Chasing after these trivial matters will leave you wishing you lived a more meaningful life.

But I know something that will.

The Problem

Most people go through life following the flow. They have no plans or goals. They’re willing to go where life takes them.

They could care less.

And there’s the problem. When people stop caring, they stop living a meaningful life.

I was one of those people for quite some time.

I’d decided I wasn’t going to care about life. I’d take it as it came. There would be no chance for disappointment.

And there was very little disappointment during that period in life.

I won’t lie, life was a lot easier but it also took out much of the meaning. There always felt like something was missing.

Eventually I came upon the truth that without care, there was little meaning to life.

Then I began to look at those who were enjoying life and making a difference. There was a difference.

They cared about a cause. They cared what happened in the world. They just cared.

I feel this is one of the keys to living a meaningful life. Discovering a cause to chase after. A cause to fight for.

One of the seven deadly capital or deadly sins is acedia. Translated “sloth” it sounds to some ears more ridiculous than sinful, but acedia has in it something worse than idleness or laziness. It signifies the “state of not caring,” a state whose lineaments have been most horrifyingly drawn by Dostoyevsky.
— James L. Jarrett

Why?

When you begin to care about a cause or a person or a mission, something changes within you.

You begin to feel invigorated. There comes a clarity in your life. Doors begin to open and you’re willing to step through.

Caring brings about a sense of being. It increases your sense of existence.

This is why you need to care!

What You Can Do About It

It’s simple to begin caring.

Look around your city. Begin to notice the nuances of the city that bother you.

What are they?

Is it the homeless population? Maybe it’s the kids without fathers. Or could it be the lack of attention you’ve paid to your family?

Whatever it is that catches your attention, choose to step forward and take action.

Discover ways to get involved in helping the homeless. Spend time with the fatherless. Invest your time with your family.

It’ll require a sacrifice of other things. And it might not be easy.

Yet when you open yourself up to the opportunity to care you’ll begin to feel again. You’ll feel like you’re living.

And your life will never be the same.

Question: What do you care about? Are you willing to take action? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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