Take a Look in the Mirror Challenge

This episode discusses the importance of giving from those of us who are blessed and have to give to those who are deeply in need. Whether young or old, so many people are out there are poor,  homeless and starving while many of us live very blessed, comfortable lives and never or very seldomly take the opportunity to help the ones in need, especially when we see or witness it in person!

Well, for those of us who act out of selfishness, greed and simply refuse to help others in need, know that God is watching and when you least expect it, He will subtract from you and that's a promise!

The Challenge (self-assessment): I challenge you to plan a private time and individually take a couple of minutes and look into a mirror. While the lights are on, ask yourself several questions...

1. Am I blessed enough to help others in need?

2. Am I a giver or a receiver?

3. Am I a giver or a taker?

Next, turn the lights off for approx. 30 seconds and think about the questions. Flip the switch back on, look at your facial expression and then answer the questions. Repeat the same process 1-2 more times and honestly assess who you are when it comes to the questions. If you depart the challenge with a negative response to any one of the questions, then please take a hard look at yourself, take the time to put the matter into prayer and do what is needed to correct the negative. Also, share this challenge with your families and others you know so that they might share their thoughts and feelings in return!     

Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:24

Hey, hey, once again, what's up out there, everybody? I'm your host, Greg Mack of the You Better Plan on the Podcast. You can catch me every Tuesday at 12 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, either way via audio or via video. So check me out and do me a favor, hit that subscribe button and jump on board because I got plenty to come. Now moving forward, I want to talk to you about something that's really something we all need to take a look at. You know, today I stood in front of the mirror and I took a look at myself. And I asked myself a question. Are you satisfied with the life that you live? And what I mean by that, you know, are you blessed? Do you believe that you are blessed? Do you believe that you have the things that you need in life to be successful and be prosperous and productive, and to help and care for others as well that need help? You know, I mean, I stood in front of that mirror for a few moments, and then I moved away from it, and then I came back again a little bit later on in the day and asked myself again, you know, do I put forth the right effort of being a good human being? And I say that to say this, and I and I'll keep this one short and sweet and to the point. So many of us have been blessed from above to live comfortable lives, and there are a lot of others out there who live exceptionally comfortable lives. Now, I'm not trying to target what you do or do not have, I'm just saying that there are so many of us who live very comfortable lives, which means you can kind of go and do things that you want to do at any given time, or almost any given time, or quite a bit of the time. Now, obviously, there are those who don't have it to do those sort of things. Now, my wife and I, we live a very comfortable life. And I'm here to tell you, we can do a lot of what we want to do when we want to do it. Now, we're not wealthy or rich, but we live very comfortable. And I'll say that to say this as well. You know, living in Las Vegas, this has been an eye-opening experience for me. Actually, living in other places as well, but here in Las Vegas, you know, when you go down to the strip or you're just going through different areas and you see people out on the streets. Now, you just like me, you know when someone needs help, and you have it to give. And I will not lie to you, there are times in my lifetime that I have had to give, and I didn't give because I had something else going on, I was too busy trying to get somewhere. But the one thing that has taken effect on me is when I drive by or I'm out somewhere and I see, you know, a young, homeless teenager, or a mother, a father with children, and I know that they're homeless, I can see it, you know, and the one thing that I try to do is I try to give back. God has blessed me to give back. And I'm telling you, you know just like I do, when there is a dire situation and someone needs help, and far too many times, many of us, we just drive on by, walk on by, or we give that ill. I'm not doing that, or we're in fear that something might happen to us, but I'm here to tell you. Those of us who live a good life, a prosperous and productive life, and you have to give, God is watching from above, and I'm here to tell you, as you continue not to give because that's what you choose to do, or you have those thoughts of, well, that person can go out and get a job, or that person can do it, you don't know their situation to make that assumption. You don't. You make that assumption, and you say to yourself, Oh, I'm not doing that. That person can get off their behind and they can go do this, McDonald's is hiring, Amazon's hiring, all these places. I'm telling you, I've learned over the years that in spite of me saying those things, and despite those things that I thought of to myself and said to myself, there are people who don't have the credentials to even do that because they've never learned it. They've never had the opportunity, it's never been given unto them. It's just straight poverty, and they haven't had that opportunity. So I'm here to tell you. The way it is, is if you have the give, please take the opportunity to do so. Don't just walk by, look at, drive by, whatever you do, and don't give. Because I'm telling you, the man upstairs, I'm letting you know he's going to start subtracting all that that you have to give because you're selfish, or you have that great life or that good life, or that well-balanced life going on, and you don't give because you don't feel the need to give, or you feel like I'm not giving this because that person can do this. I'm telling you, if you do not give, start taking a look at situations that you know you can help out on because you want to be selfish, or because you are selfish, or because you don't feel the need to do so, God's gonna start subtracting. And I'm telling you, right here and right now, you can take my word for it. The Bible talks about giving, giving cheerfully, and so many of us we have a lot to give, but we just don't. Why we don't do it, I don't know. Everybody has their own way of doing things, but I'm telling you, you know, uh, driving the other day, going by a young family out on the curb out by a park and let's take my dogs out to walk, you know. I went by them initially and I wasn't exactly sure. But then once I got out and had a chance to walk my dogs, I realized, okay, this young family, they don't have much. And if you allow God to use you, he will show you what a real situation is. Now we may not mean to, and because we judge them or prejudge them, we just don't care. We just move on and let it happen. Any way it can, as long as we're not involved. But when I went by them the very first time walking my pets, I realized they needed some help, you know. And I don't recall exactly how much money I may have had on me or or or whatever the case was, but I just recall once I got done walking my pets, and I took them back to my vehicle, I drove my vehicle down to the far end of the park. And I parked it, I got out, and I took whatever I had in my wallet over to them. And I know it was somewhere between 40 and 50 bucks that I had in my wallet on me. And initially I said, I'll just give them a 10 or 5 or $5 or $10. What I had in my wallet, I gave it all to them. Because they needed it more so than I did. And I didn't think about it, I didn't have to think about it. I took the opportunity to help someone in need because I had to give. So for you, in your plan of the day, whenever you decide to do it, I want you to plan on getting home from work or from school or wherever you're coming from. And I want you to stop in front of your mirror. Just you, nobody else. I want you to turn the light on. Make sure the light is on. Do it at a time frame where maybe it's dark and you're in the room by yourself or bathroom or room or wherever you are. And I want you to have the light on. And for those of you that have, and for those of you that want to participate, this is the challenge to you. This is part of your daily plan. Don't have to be your everyday plan, but part of one of your plans of the day, a plan of action. I want you to stand in front of that mirror for one to two minutes, and I want you to assess yourself. Do a self-assessment. Ask yourself some questions. Who am I? What am I about? Am I a giver or a taker? Am I a giver or a receiver? Am I enough that I don't mind giving? Or am I somebody who just, that's not my responsibility. I have a family to take care of. I have me to take care of. I have this or I have that. Ask yourself those questions. Then I want you to turn the light switch off for about 30 seconds. And then turn the light switch back on and take a look at your facial expression. And then ask yourself those same questions. Do it a couple times. Once you put yourself in the dark, really think about it before you turn that light switch back on. Because folks, we have got to do better. We have so many people that are homeless, so many people that are starving, so many people that are just hungry. These kids out here. I'm seeing mothers with young kids, dads with young kids, veterans, homeless, don't have. And they're down on the strip or wherever they are, you know, and we just drive by and have the give or we don't. I'm not asking you to put yourselves in danger. I'm just asking you to take a look at who you are. Because if we don't start doing better for those of us that have to give and just refuse to give, God Himself is going to start subtracting from what you have. And I'm telling you this for your own good. It's just a blessing to be a blessing. And I dare you to go out there and get your blessing. I'm not asking you to give everything you have, and I'm not saying you need to give every day. But there are just times when all of us, or at least most of us, have seen a situation and we did nothing about it. And I don't know whether you like me. I I could I just felt guilty on multiple situations because I had a chance to help, and I didn't. So from me to you, I challenge you to take any day of the week, that evening, that night, whatever, wherever you can go from flipping the light switch off to flipping it back on and talking to yourself, asking yourself some questions. And I don't care how old you are, we have kids who live prominent lives and they look down on other kids because they don't have, and they have done nothing, most of them, to earn anything they have, but they know mom and dad is just gonna give it to them. And if you are that child or that parent who does that, that is you. I have no judgment to pass on you. I'm just telling you, you need to give, and you need to teach your children to give. Because it is so hurtful to be out there at the park and just down on the strip, just walking around, and you see so many people. You know they're starving. They don't have. And if I got a bottle of water or some juice, I'll hand it to them. Because I know they need it. And I'm here to tell you, we all fall short on these things, but we have an opportunity to make things right, to make things better. Because we we just gotta help each other. We talk about loving people, we talk about loving Christ, we talk about loving one another, our families. Well, you need to love strangers and people who need help. I for me, I'm gonna do better. And I'm gonna do more because it is incumbent upon me to do my part. I'm just like you. If I don't give the way that I'm supposed to give, especially when I know there's a need, he's going to subtract from me just as he's going to do from you. So let's not talk a good game, especially if you call yourself a Christian, and you're the embodiment of Christ, and he has given you all these wonderful things, but you choose not to give, but rather receive and take. Don't be upset when things start getting subtracted. Because it's coming, and I'm telling you, we're going to make this world a better place. Because in one of our plans of the day, one of our plans of the weeks, or the months, or the years, we're just gonna go out and not even think about it. And you're gonna see someone in need, and you're going to help them because you want to. Not because I'm telling you to or somebody else told you to, but because you want to, because you have to give. And I find myself giving not to a point where it's excessive, but to a point where I know a situation when I see one. And when I have it, me and my wife will stop and we will give, we will help. And I want you to do the same because God loves you and so do I. You know, and again, you know, we're all for the most part good people, and we have a lot to give. So why not take that opportunity to help someone in need, you know? If this message is meant for you, and you and you and you, and me too, then receive it and do something about it. Don't pass it up or pass it on to someone else because you don't want to do anything about it. Let's get up and get it. This is 2026, and there's so much going on in the world, and people need help. We're getting ready to head from the winter into the summer, but we still got some winter weather to deal with, and there are people out on these streets that are freezing and don't have anything to eat. And we have the means to help. And I'm going to keep doing stuff. You know, as I continue to be blessed by God Himself, I'm going to give, give, give. I'm not going to sell myself short and just do stuff that's out of the ordinary like I'm going crazy, but I know when I need to do my part. And all you need to do, if you got any questions, is pray about it. And he'll get you there. Uh uh. Ah, man. God Almighty, I promise you, he will get you there. Give, give, give. Give in the name of the Lord. That's all I ask of you. That's a challenge. Take a look in the mirror. Turn the light on, turn the light off a couple times, ask yourself some questions, and then let's get it done. And let's share with each other. Let's love one another. Let's be successful. Let's help someone who needs something in their lives get there as best we can. Thank you for listening in. Thank you for watching. I appreciate your time. Again, you can catch me every Tuesday at 12 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. My podcast. You better plan on it. And I'm telling you, better plan on it. Because there's things to be done, and we're going to get it done. And always remember, a plan that succeeds is a plan that fulfills one's needs. Thank you. God bless, and we'll chat soon.