The rainbow is a symbol of God’s commitment to mankind.
Americans struggle with commitment. About half of our marriages end in divorce. We also have trouble committing to a healthy diet or lifestyle because around two-thirds of our population are overweight or obese. We aren’t very committed to our churches either. We church hop when something about our church doesn’t suit us anymore. We look for something better.
Whether it’s church hopping, job hopping or spouse hopping, the grass is always greener on the other side. We are always able to find greener pastures, for a time. But, after a little time goes by, we usually find that every person, every workplace, every place of worship has its drawbacks. The perfection we thought we had at last found, was a mirage of sorts. So what do we do? We usually look elsewhere.
We have become a type of nomadic culture, seeking perfection in an imperfect world. We want the perfect house, car, job, church, kids and spouse. We want the perfect body, but we’d really rather just take a pill instead of sweat and count calories. We want the Norman Rockwell painting and the Currier and Ives Christmas card. We want perfection and we will break every commitment we make along the way on our great quest.
Unfortunately, what we seek, we will not find on this side of Heaven. Life is not perfect and people, are certainly not perfect. We have perfect moments from time to time and that’s what brilliant artists like Rockwell are able to capture, but a life of perfection is a myth.
So, what are we to do? Are we to live miserable, unfulfilled lives? Absolutely not! However, I think a good start is to take a look at our current commitments. Do they line up with who we are and who we want to be? Are we over committed? It’s hard to have any sort of exercise plan if we have meetings lined up every night of the week. It’s hard to become a part of a church if we travel every weekend or are involved in some sort of sport every Sunday. It’s hard to devote time to our marriages if we line up commitments that keep us away from our spouses.
Next, we need to take a look at our faith walk. If we are committed to God first, these other commitments will fall into place or fall away, whichever needs to happen. We need to learn to say no to things that don’t line up with Biblical principles.
I think a faith mentor can be super helpful too. Pick out someone you know who seems to be walking the walk you would like to walk, someone who is living in close relationship with God. Ask them for help and advice. I’ll bet they will gladly help you.
Finally, we need to let go of the perfection fairytale. It simply doesn’t exist. We need to make a list of five commitments we are serious about and go to God in prayer and ask for help. If we turn back to Him, He will help us. Commitment is hard work, but the results are so worth it. Little by little we can become the nation of committed people that we once were. Who’s with me?
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂