By writing about the community we will create or join, and by listing the ways we will appreciate nature and art, we are reminding ourselves, over and over, that life is not about us. It's about sharing our human experience with other people.

Those who realize the epic story of life is not about them but actually about the people around them somehow win in the end.

For example, if we own a house-painting business, our customer's external problem might be an unsightly home. The internal problem, however, may involve a sense of embarrassment about having the ugliest home on the street. Knowing this, our marketing could offer "Paint That Will Make Your Neighbors Jealous".

May we all be richly rewarded for putting our customers' stories above our own.

If loving other people is a bit of heaven then certainly isolation is a bit of hell, and to that degree, here on earth, we decide in which state we would like to live.

What if the story of our lives is less about what we build and more about who we build up?

What pain are you helping customers avoid? What pain are they currently dealing with that will be ended if they buy your products or service? Some examples are:

In the churches I used to go to, I felt like I didn't fit in... I was accepted but not understood. There was room at the table for me, but I was not part of the family.

Empathetic statements start with words like, "We understand how it feels to..." or "Nobody should have to experience..." or "Like you, we are frustrated by..." or, in the case of one Toyota commercial inviting Toyota owners to engage their local Toyota service center, simply, "We care about your Toyota".

I think it is interesting that God designed people to need other people. We see those cigarette advertisements with the rugged cowboy riding around alone on a horse, and we think that is strength, when really, it is like setting your soul down on a couch and not exercising it. The soul needs to interact with other people to be healthy.

Now people matter.

Do you pray for your pastor on Saturday night? Don't criticize him, but rather pray for him. He needs your prayers. The Devil gives him enough opposition. You don't need to join the crowd that crucifies the man who is preaching the Word of God. You ought to uphold his hands as Aaron and Hur upheld the hands of Moses on behalf of Israel. My heart goes out to pastors who are in need of congregations who will stand with them.