A deep commitment to something beyond ourselves is what gives meaning to life. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “If a man hasn’t discovered something that he will die for, he isn’t fit to live.” [1]

What are you willing to give everything for? To many, our families, our children, inspire our greatest devotion. We teach and sacrifice and do our best for our loved ones—because we love them so much. In a sense, we give our lives for them in all of the small sacrifices we make. We stay up all night with our children when they are sick; we provide the necessities of life for them; we protect and guide them; we hope they’ll have a better life than we’ve had. Such selflessness will outlive us and, we hope, will inspire our children to do the same for their children.

Some have a passion for service in other ways. They’re willing to pay the price to see the fulfillment of their dream. History is filled with the lives of courageous men and women who have given their all for a worthy cause. The life mission of Martin Luther King Jr. was his nonviolent struggle for civil rights. His dream was that his four little children would “one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” [2] His devotion to this dream of equality has left an enduring legacy.