Word: Loyalty

Sentence:

Loyalty is staying committed to the purpose, especially when the story gets messy.

Passage:

Most people think loyalty is allegiance to a person.

Stay with them. Defend them. Choose a side.

But loyalty is supposed to be bigger than that.

Loyalty is commitment to a purpose.

When you stay loyal to purpose, you stop getting pulled around by personalities, moods, and moments. You get steadier because you know what you are here for.

Recently, a former student called me from jail.

He was picked up riding in a car with someone who had an unlicensed, concealed weapon. He had been to jail before, but his path had been clean for almost five years. And in one day, he lost his job at FedEx, and now has to rebuild again. That is how fast life can swing the other direction.

I have known him a long time. I have watched him try to outgrow what he was born into.

From the start, we connected on a shared purpose.

Break the cycle of poverty. 

Not as a slogan. As a life plan. As a set of choices. As the slow work of healing, learning, and staying in the fight when it would be easier to quit.

So when he called, I did not hear it as my moment to rescue him. I heard it as a reminder that our shared purpose for him still had some work to do. 

In that moment, I did what I could: I listened, helped in a small way, and reminded him that one setback does not get to define him. Ironically, on that same day, I received and filled out an application on his behalf for an internship with a community organization that supports people like him. Our work continues, and I’m not giving up on our commitment we made over a decade ago.

Because loyalty to purpose is not about blind approval.

It is about staying connected to what you believe is possible, even when someone is in a hard chapter.

And that is the kind of loyalty that lasts.

Your Turn:

What purpose are you loyal to, even when it gets hard to carry?

In February, every comment on a Match blog post—past or present—will serve as an entry to win a custom The Match hoodie!

That’s right, you will receive an entry for the raffle for every comment you make this month. The winner will be announced on Thursday, March 5th. I can’t wait to hear your comments and reflections.