What Are You Willing to Die For ? – A Salute to Our Soldiers

The life of a soldier is an interesting one. They voluntarily give up their own life for a cause or purpose that is much larger than themselves. After signing on, new recruits are sent to basic training.  They are pushed beyond any reasonable bounds and systematically broken down so that they can be rebuilt into effective soldiers. To be an effective soldier one must be willing to put others, their unit, and ultimately their country in front of self-interest.

Why do we have such respect for soldiers? Because they're willing to die for a worthy cause.  As humans we give our highest respect to those who have died for something of lasting value. Physical life is not the ultimate; a life of meaning and purpose is. If you are searching for happiness you will not find it apart from a worthy cause -your own calling something that you are willing to die on a hill for. I tell people all the time in my coaching practice that there's nothing wrong with dying on a hill you just want to make sure it's your hill not somebody else's.

In one of the top selling books of 2006, Success Built to Last-Creating a Life that Matters, resoundingly confirms this notion.  The book researches the lives of people that we as humans consider to be the most successful. People like Nelson Mandela and Mother Theresa. Their extensive research concludes what we already intuitively know.  People who live their lives built around a compelling cause or purpose are the healthiest, happiest, and most respected people on the face of the earth.

The story of dying for a worthy cause is not a new one. Irrespective of your personal beliefs and feelings about Him, no one has had a greater impact on civilization than a small town carpenter named Jesus. The Scripture tells us that he willingly laid down his life so that others might live. He was totally plugged into his God-given purpose and calling. I am personally thankful that he was willing to die on a hill for me and the rest of humanity.

I would ask you, have you identified your own cause worth dying for?