Commitment

Today lets talk about commitment. What are you committed to? What are you not committed to? Everyone struggles with commitment whether it be working out, diet, finishing up a project, or doing something the right way. I struggle with it the same as you. Often times we are committed to the things we love most or the things that have the most perceived impact on our life i.e. marriage, money, material things. These are things that have a measured impact on our life. If we are not committed in our marriage (although this is only the case with 50% of the population) we might find ourselves alone; if we are not committed to money we might not have a place to live, this list goes on and on.

Now lets talk about some of the stuff that we think doesn't have a big impact on us day to day.mSome examples would be Faith, doing the right thing, friendship and things we aren't paid to do. I think the lack of commitment in these areas is because we perceive we could live without them if absolutely necessary or something that is more important (marriage, money and material things) trumps them. Which brings me to some questions....

Is your commitment to your spouse greater than your commitment to God?
Does chasing money bring you more fulfillment than helping somebody in need?
Does a new "widget" make you smile more than a friend?

I think by their own guilt everyone would answer these questions with a no. But deep down most people if they answered honestly would have to say yes. We know why this is so now the real question is "how can we change it?".

I think people need to evaluate the reasons why they are committed to something and find out if it is either good or bad. Evaluate the things they are most committed to and the things they are least committed to. After that is all done evaluate what the short term and long term impacts and benefits these things have. For Example:

Faith: Worship once a week, fellowship, sometimes questioning, fullness, filled, happy

Friendship: Smiling most of the time, sometimes hard times, trust, somebody to talk to

Money: pay the bills, sometimes stressful, takes up a lot of time, fun to buy things

Widgets: thrill of something new, something to tell others about, something to enjoy for a while


The list could go on and on. But I think if people would be honest with themselves they will find they are not committed to the things that really matter in life. They fool themselves into happiness; they take the easier route when in the end it is the most difficult they will ever experience.