The Wrong Reasons

Someone left a very interesting comment on a previous entry. They essentially asked if doing the right thing was still right if it is done for the wrong reasons. I can't claim to be all wise, but I have an opinion.

My son has a natural desire to do whatever he wants, right or wrong. I believe he knows the difference without me telling him. Often when I catch him doing something he shouldn't, he is looking around to see if anyone is looking... guilty conscience, I guess. Anyway, I have set up a set of consequences that my child will face if he does certain things that are wrong. You could argue that the only reason why my son behaves is because of the consequences he will face if he does not. That is true, but eventually he will do the right thing habitually. He will see that more good comes from consistently making right choices rather than wrong. So the short answer is that it is best to do the right thing no matter what the motivation is... in my opinion.

The person commenting also made mention of something like "the happiness you deserve" as a motivation to do right. I understand the premise of the question to be an underlying desire to receive the credit I deserve for doing the right thing. I believe that I am not promised happiness and that the only thing I deserve is condemnation. It is a tenet of my faith that helps me to remember that every gift and blessing comes from my Creator and I can take no credit for it.

The Right Thing

Doing the right thing is not fun. I might say that it is not always fun, but I really think that to our natural selves, it is never fun. Inside of me are desires to serve myself and my own needs. I sometimes care more about serving those desires than I do about doing what is right. There are also external pressures. Sometimes two areas of my life pull me in different directions and cause even more conflict. Those external pressures are usually a result of bad decisions I've previously made, but they are still a force to be reckoned with.

My evil desires and external pressures are always in conflict with the right thing to do. Add that to the fact that I'm still not going to feel great about making the right choices (because it is still not fun even though it is right), and the deck is stacked against me.

I do think that our Father in heaven is very concerned about my choices. I believe that he smiles when I choose to do the right thing. I've recently been able to see a friend who has made a string of bad choices start to own that and make some good decisions. I could tell that he had no fulfillment from doing the right things, but I was filled with joy when I was able to observe. I can only imagine the joy that our Father has when I do the right things.