Just Commit

Read: Numbers 23:19


…Hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?                                                                                              Numbers 23:19


     An increasing problem among young people today that often they take with them into adulthood is a lack of commitment. They don’t want to feel tied down to plans or engagements so they make no commitments whatsoever. This is evidenced in our society by the lack of commitment in marriage. Instead of making a commitment to one person for life, they hook up for as long as it is convenient for them, and then they move on. Lack of commitment is seen in many job situations, where you would be hard-pressed to find someone who has been at the same job since they got out of college.

     Unfortunately, that same attitude has crept into the Christian circles, as well. Christians, especially teenagers and young adults, are afraid of commitment. Maybe they are willing to commit to the big things, like marriage, but they are not willing to commit themselves to work in a ministry of the church. Oh, they will help out if they are asked, but they will not commit to working week after week in the bus ministry or in a Sunday school class. They want to keep their options open in case they don’t feel like doing it anymore. There is a lack of commitment to youth activities and special services. “Well, if I can show up, then I will be there,” they say when the youth pastor or college and career director announces an activity. They won’t commit because they want to have an easy way out if something that they might enjoy better comes up. As a youth leader myself, I can say from experience that it is almost impossible to plan an activity around young people who are unwilling to commit themselves. Gone are the days of making commitments and then bending over backwards and making sacrifices to fulfill them, and in are the days of indecision and spinelessness.

     From a spiritual standpoint, as well as from a social one, making commitments is a large part of developing a character that is dependable. If your youth pastor needs help, make the commitment to help him. If your Sunday school teacher takes time to plan an activity, commit to be there. If the bus ministry needs workers, commit to being there whenever help is needed. Determine today that you will not be one who sits on the fence and is a afraid to make a commitment when one is required.

 

Quote of the day: “Commitment is staying loyal to what you said you were going to do long after the mood you said it in has left you.”