What are you devoted to?

From the oft-read book “Tuesdays with Morrie,” there is a paragraph I really enjoy:

"So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half asleep, even when they’re doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things. They way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to the community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning." (43)

I think this accurately describes far too many people in our society, myself included a lot of the time. So it should stop to make us think, what are we devoted to?

Are we devoted to making a lot of money, making sure we are comfortable with everything that we might possibly want, having the adoration of friends no matter how real the friendship, power, and pleasure?

Or are we devoted to being the best person we can possibly be, to helping others be the best people they can possibly be, to loving others with all of our heart, to helping our neighbor and our enemy, to challenging ourselves to grow, coming to better know ourselves and others, and to honoring God in all of our actions?

It is difficult to honestly ask ourselves the question about what we are devoted to, because we’re scared of the answer (or at least I am). But if we can honestly assess that about ourselves, we are on the path toward being devoted to the right things, to being the best we can be, and to loving others the way that they were created to be loved.