Weekly Devotional

COMMITMENT

Psalm 37:5
Commit your way to the LORD; Trust in him, and he will act.

    God has made a covenant, otherwise known as a commitment, to man. Part of the covenant is unconditional – He promises to love us no matter what. HE has also promised to protect us and never leave or forsake us. For this there is one condition though; we must love HIM with all our heart, mind and soul. To fulfill this, we need to obey God; this shows our trust and love in HIM.
    Christians want to do this, but due to our sinful nature, we stumble and slip in our path. When we do stumble, hopefully we turn to God, repent, seek forgiveness and his help to get rid of the desire to do it again. Sometimes, however, the sin is so ignored by us that eventually we miss it entirely. In fact, sometimes people don’t even see it as a sin anymore. That is until it is pointed out to us by the Holy Spirit, and we are convicted of it. If not, we continue on our way oblivious to the fact that we are grieving the Spirit. (A sin in itself)
    The prevalent one in mind is vows. What they mean to us; but more importantly, what they mean to God. In James 5:12b ‘Let your “yes” be “yes” and your “no” be “no”’ he is referring to what Jesus says in Matthew 5:37. A vow is a form of commitment: a promise to do something at a certain time and place, or not to do something again. Don’t make promises you never mean to keep. To break a vow is to lie.
    God takes vows very seriously. Unfortunately, in our society today we promise things all the time and don’t follow through. We hardly even consider them vows – but they are. Our commitment to God is a vow. Our commitment to obey Him is a vow. When we sign up for chapel, our commitment to fellowship is a vow. When we sign up for Bible classes, Faith Fellowship or other activities, our commitment is a vow.
    We break vows all the time and don’t even worry about it. It seems that even our commitments to our family and friends are not sacred anymore. Our excuses are many: I wasn’t feeling it, I didn’t get along with so-and-so or such and such, it was afternoon rec, and it’s summer, the game was on, I had a previous engagement, I was tired, etc…
    Let’s try and be honest here. By giving our word to do something and then not doing it, is a sin against God. Didn't Jesus say the least you do to one of these you do to me? So no matter who you break a promise to, you are doing it to God! Which commandments do we break by this action?
1.    Idolatry (placing something else in God’s place)
2.    Not obeying God, therefore not loving God with all your heart.
3.    By not obeying God, you take His name in vain.
8.   Do not steal – by promising to do something and not doing it you are stealing from God – you are taking time promised for another purpose.
9.    Shall not bear false witness. (Lying)
10.  Shall not covet – By breaking a vow you are serving self not God
    So, in one simple thoughtless act, you break six commandments! I’d say that was serious and not to be taken lightly. Take some time and think about this; we need to take captive our thoughts and actions – after all we are held accountable.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I repent of my untrue statements and promises. I realize that I did not consider the depth of my sin against you in my thoughtless actions. Forgive me and help me to honor my obligations and not make a commitment I am doubtful of fulfilling. Give me the strength to stand by my yes or no in all my actions. Help me to take my thoughts captive and keep you before me at all times. Amen.