Lesson learned from Frodo Baggins of the Shire

This last week I reread The Lord of the Rings, most of us are very familiar with the story. The darkness of Mordor are getting ready to completely take over the Middle Earth,  the only thing the evil Sauron is missing is his ring of power. All the races (Elves, Men, Dwarves, and Hobbits) unite to fight against this common enemy and save their world. Oddly enough the weakest of this races gets the biggest task... while everyone else is fighting, a couple of Hobbits (Frodo and Sam) have to sneak past Sauron's all seeing eye, get to mount doom, and destroy the ring.  They succeed! against all the odds, with multiple close calls, and an exciting yet dangerous journey they accomplish the task and destroy the power of darkness! However when is all said and done, the great Hero of the story (Frodo) does not get a chance to enjoy the beauty of his calm Shire (his hometown)... he has to leave.

"So i thought too, once. But I have been too deeply hurt, Sam. 

I tried to save the Shire, and it has been saved, but not for me.

It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: Someone 

has to give them up, loose them, so that others might keep them. 

But you are my heir: All that I had and might have had I leave to you"

Frodo Baggins to Samwise Gamgee, Lord of the Rings, The return of the King 

That paragraph caught me completely off guard, Frodo knew all along that the sacrifice he was making was not for him, but for the people behind him. He was making a way for others to enjoy a safe, peaceful life... Regardless of the the fact that it meant letting go of him his dreams, his future, his life... he did not budge, he carried the ring all the way to mount doom and gave himself away so others could be saved. It was not about him...

"For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, 

but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it"

Jesus to all of us, Mark 8:35

Greater love has no one than this: 
to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
Jesus to all of us, John 15:13

And it is not about me either... 

So many times we completely forget and loose focus of our mission here on earth as followers of Christ. We were created with a purpose (to be salt and light in the world... to carry His name to the ends of the earth... and the list could go on and on) to be the answer that this world is looking for, but so many times we get so consumed with ourselves, and what we want, and how we wanted it, and our personal goals and ambitions, that we loose focus of what life is truly all about. 

The saddest part of this is that our egocentric lifestyle not only affects us, it also damages the destiny of the people that is walking behind us. Because whether you realize it or not there is people following your steps and looking up to you, watching you, waiting for you to unlock the door of their future... 

I challenge you to take a honest, sincere look inwards... what's driving you? why are you doing what you are doing? What type of legacy are you leaving behind for the Sam of your life?