True Motivation

[Joseph Stack]

 

The answer to this question is very simple, it is for God. I have been raised and educated in the Catholic faith and hold firmly to its values. I know, I sound like a religious nut but I truly believe that what you do in this life will determine your happiness in the next life. Learning from my relatives, I see how important the spiritual life can affect a person's happiness. One side of my family are devout Irish Catholics; they are married, stable jobs, but most importantly content. On the other side are my Asian relatives. They were baptized but now they are completely secular, chasing the values of society: money, sex, prestige, fame, etc. This has resulted in alcoholics, gambling addicts, nine divorces, criminals, bastard children, poverty and fights. Most tragic though, they are all miserable, angry people. They have no direction and no hope in something better. My Asian relatives are searching for the glamors of the world but never realizing that happiness comes from knowing God. I know that if I place God first in my life, everything else comes easier. Its easier to be generous, patient, selfless, prudent, courageous when God is first because all these virtues come from Him. I am not saying that everything I do is perfect. In fact, I am very prideful which sometimes hinders me from making the right decisions. Despite my faults, I make a firm effort to live by God which are at times, very difficult. Especially now, this is the first time in my life where I have been immersed in a surrounding environment that does not hold the same beliefs has mine. Its a constant everyday battle, that at the end of the day I must ask myself “Have my actions reflected my real purpose in life? I have lived up to my faith?”. At this point in my life, when I am young, in college and out on my own, my faith is truly being tested. The depth of my faith are being revealed. Whatever it maybe, everyday starts with my actions which hopefully reflect my true motivation in life.