Desire

Desire is the driving force behind a preponderance of human behavior. Chew on that for a second. If you’re hungry, you want food. If you’re thirsty, you want water. If you’re bored, you want something to do. If you’re lonely, you want someone to be with. Between perceived need and action there is a desire. And that desire drives our action. People go after what they want.

In most life situations our desires conflict with one another. Our action is determined by which desire is the strongest. Something in us has to acquiesce. Antithetical, or even discordant, desires cannot both be satisfied. But ultimately, people do what they want at the moment they have to choose between multiple desires. That is why it is so important to know what we want in life, and to want it more than everything. Whimsically acting on the desires of the moment will lead us in a broad, anarchic path that leads us to nothing.

We want too many things too much, and they add up to too little. There are so many things to want in this world: good grades, money, fame, respect, intelligence, being right, being noticed, sex, friends, a girlfriend, a boyfriend, a better parent, a family, free time, entertainment, someone else’s life, and the list continues to the point of infinity. I believe that a lot of these things are worthwhile, but I also believe that if we get caught up in wanting all these divergent things our life will be meandering and bring us to destruction.

I think that the answer to this problem, that of a capricious life yanked to and fro by vacillating wants, is to find a superlative desire that renders every other longing subservient. And then, when we find this one thing worth wanting more than anything else, we go after it. We let that focused passion drive the entirety of our lives. If we do this, we’ll find life is a lot easier to live, decisions a lot simpler, and everything we do becomes infused with meaning because we’re intent upon pursuing what we deem to be the most valuable thing in existence.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. – Matthew 14:45-46