Commitment

Commitment

That word meets with great distaste and discomfort these days. It is a word that can make me very cynical of our current culture in North America.  In politics, candidates pledge a commitment to do something when they are elected to a place of power, and then after the election they present any number of excuses to not follow through on that commitment. 

Less than half of North American marriages last, with most breaking up within the first 5 years.  I've heard of weddings performed today with the vow “as long as love should last.”  No commitment there! These statistics don’t include the great number of people that choose to live together without getting married.  Many women, longing for commitment, decide to live with their boyfriend in an arrangement they hope will eventually lead to a marriage commitment. Others don’t want to be bound by a commitment, enjoying the “freedom” to leave the relationship whenever they no longer feel that it is working.

In many cases parents are not committed to their children.  The tales of child abuse abound.  Parents physically or sexually assaulting their own flesh and blood!  There are also so many parents that simply abandon the family.  Many children grow up not knowing their father or mother because the parent left and never came back.

Children are no longer committed to their parents.  This culture espouses entitlement and rebellion rather than respect and obedience.  The tales of senior abuse by family members is almost as prevalent as child abuse -- sons or daughters stealing from their elderly parents as they “manage” the finances.

Employers are certainly not committed to their employees, thus employees are always looking elsewhere to find a better place to work.  Big corporations spend millions on advertising to make it look like they are committed to the customer, but in reality they are far more committed to increasing their already enormous wealth.

So, you can see how I can become cynical.  Do you have anyone you can fully trust to be committed to YOU? Is there anyone that really cares about you through your ups and downs?  Is there anyone who will walk through the valley of divorce, of cancer, of death of a loved one, of aging?

I have some GOOD NEWS for YOU!

There IS someone committed to YOU, and His name is Jesus!

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything in all creation can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom 8:38-39)

Be strong and courageous.  Do not be afraid or terrified…because the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. (Deut 31:6)

“I tell you the truth,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields – and with them persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life. (Mk 10:29-30)

I am the Good Shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me – just as the Father knows me and I know the Father – and I lay down my life for the sheep. (Jn 10:14-15)

Soak in these promises and know that if you belong to Jesus, these promises of never-ending commitment are yours!  If you don’t belong to Jesus, read the gospel of Mark (in the New Testament of the Bible) and get to know Him. He wants to offer you this same commitment.