Many people today are afraid of making commitments. There seems to be a fear that if I commit to something then I’ll be missing out on something else. Many express a desire to “keep all my options open.” Yet, the secret to real happiness in life is not keeping our options open, but finding something worthy of a commitment and then giving it our all.

The ability to stick by our commitments is the essence of the second point of the Scout Law, “A Scout is Loyal.” In this homily, given at the H. Roe Bartle Scout Reservation in Osceola, Missouri, I explore the importance of loyalty and the Christian virtue of fortitude.