Parshas Chayei Sarah provides the resounding answer. The Torah tells and retells the story of Eliezer and its lessons of chessed to teach us that we must learn and constantly reinforce in order to internalize such teachings. The need for and ramifications of internalizing religious, moral, or ethical teachings also warrants some elaboration. Obviously, the present forum does not allow for a comprehensive presentation. Let us, however, focus, albeit briefly and inadequately, on the topic of chessed .
Man is naturally a self-centered being.
This inclination, like any divinely implanted inclination or instinct, is very important for Hashem s plan for the world. He formed it to be inhabited. Our self-centeredness allows us in our service of Hashem to be initially motivated by ulterior considerations of reward and punishment. As is true of all instincts, self-centeredness has to be refined. We should allow it to flourish in the form of desiring life, but we cannot allow it to deteriorate into crass, crude egotism.