Reward???

     I went for a walk with Russ this morning, which is our usual routine. I didn't necessarily FEEL like going for a walk. I just know it's good for me. I don't derive any immediate reward for doing it. I only know what is likely to happen if I go for very long without making the effort.
     It caused me to ponder what motivates us to do things. We all like rewards. We have a special area in our brains the primary function of which is to send "feel good" messages throughout our body when we are happy. That's how we become so easily addicted- to sex, food, drugs, alcohol, even endorphins brought about by vigorous exercise. It's obviously not necessarily a benefit that we have this reaction. It can lead us into REALLY BIG trouble.
     So, what about things that DON'T provide an immediate reward? How do we carry on when results are much more long-term, even eternal. We change our baby's diaper over and over again because it will stink, cause diaper rash, etc. We get up and go to work because we know we have to pay the mortgage or rent, buy food, make car payments, etc. We make food or do laundry for our children because they will complain or make a mess doing it themselves, or some other more immediate reason. But, what about being honest, or helpful, or kind? I guess you could say there can be a reward of having people like us. It's better than being disliked.
     God has said, through a prophet, that there must needs be opposition in all things. We know there is good and evil, truth and falsehood, pleasant and miserable, etc. If we were to choose what God would have us choose every time then receive an immediate reward, we would be doing good for an immediate reward, NOT because we were sincerely choosing good. That's why it's only meaningful if and when we endure to the end. We keep on doing good because we sincerely believe, deep in our hearts, that helping people, being kind, telling the truth, working hard, etc. is truly what we want to do. We believe in doing good. We believe in what God believes in. And it's not just because we expect a reward.