Loyalty

One thing I try to consistently be in my life is loyal to those I owe loyalty to. Loyalty one of the most important character traits that I strive to have and I strongly appreciate in other people. I am loyal to my job, try my best to be loyal to my friends and family and, yes, even in the midst of my resentment and disappointment I am loyal to my homeland. 

     I will never go out of my way to be a danger to people in my community or a danger to my nation in any way that can be of a severe detriment. I stand to lose immensely by becoming threatening to systems and situations far more powerful than me.

Even in the middle of some of my deepest throngs of bitterness and resentment, if the shoe drops and our society went to hell, I'd still willingly step in harms way if it meant protecting the interests of the people I care about and the interests of what our country stands for, like liberty, justice, and opportunity.  

I love loyalty. It's such a cool concept. The idea serving the interests of the things you care about and rising up to the call of responsibility to those things and people in your life you care about or serve.  There are few traits more honorable and noble than loyalty.

     I am loyal to the best of my ability to those I love. I am also loyal  to the utmost to anyone and anything that has helped me in my life. If you help me, you have a measure of loyalty from me. I just think it is an honorable and noble thing to repay kindness and generosity from others by giving them kindness and generosity back. It's kind of a positive tit-for-tat. A give good, get good back type situation. 

       Even with those I criticize, whether it be the nation or just one of my close friends, if there is an adverse situation where someone's life or safety is at risk, it doesn't matter how frustrated or angry I may be, my loyalty and obligation to that person or thing takes precedent. 

  I value friends who stay loyal to me even in the midst of my less pleasant moments and in the midst of my own sufferings and failures. Loyal friends are a treasure, and they can be hard to come by. 

   Of all my loyalties, though, whether it be to my job, my friends and family, my country, or just humanity in general, there is one loyalty that trumps all other loyalties in my life, and that is my loyalty to Jesus Christ. My loyalty to God has to be above all other loyalties in my life. He is my creator, and the author of my life. I owe him such a strong allegiance not just because He created me, but He saved me from more horrible fates and more abysmal circumstances than I can count.  

He delivered me from a life of hate and anguish. Jesus put me in the position I am in right now, where I have a stable full time job working around a lot of cool people who treat me well, where I have my own apartment with two awesome church roommates, where I have good friends and a good church to go to, and I am in one of the safest places in the world. 

 Even with my criticism of the country, I'm grateful that I was born here. God put me in one of the most beautiful places in the world, and I don't show enough appreciation for that fact. 

      Jesus did all of this for me out of love and grace. I owe him loyalty just because I want to return that love back to him, but I can't offer any repayment that comes within a lightyear of the grace He has shed on me. 

 

 As a result, God has my absolute, undying loyalty. I will always serve him.  I will admit, I am not always the best at serving him. I fall short quite often at doing the things He wants me to do. But that doesn't mean I don't love Him. It just means I'm far, FAR from his level of glory and perfection. 

 Loyalty to God is my number one priority because He always has my best interests in mind.  He will always lead me to the best outcome, and I trust and try to follow Him as much as I can.

 Loyalty and bravery are two of my favorite human traits, and are the noblest of traits of honorable people.