Let your heart therefore be wholly devoted to the LORD our God, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments, as at this day. 1 Kings 8:61
Roughly twenty years ago, I was in the hospital for observation to see if they could determine why I was having seizures. It was a one week stay in a unit that had four rooms with glass fronts; each patient was hooked to 80 electrodes and under both physical and video observation all of the time. The situation created an environment that lent itself to intimacy. In order to provoke seizures, the first tactic was to discontinue seizure meds. This was a concern to one young man in the room directly across from mine. He had not been married long and with the help of his medication, his wife had never seen him have a seizure. He had several violent ones that week, however, she showed up every day to visit and help him as best she could. In contrast, the man in the room next to him came to my room one night upset. He was a successful businessman who, from his own account, had an active and fun life with lots of assets and parties. As his seizures threatened his ability to work and therefore, his lifestyle, his wife had decided to leave him. She told him that it wasn’t what she “signed up for” and had no intention of being his nurse. These are the two sides of commitment.
What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate. Mark 10:9
Lord willing, in a little over a week from now, our daughter and her fiancé will take their wedding vows and commit to a life together. At forty, they have a greater appreciation for joys and trials that may challenge their commitment than my wife and I did in our early twenties. The picture above was taken as we were about to enter our wedding reception; on the sides are the vows that we made to each other. We don’t seem to fulfill as we would like, but each day we rise and seek God’s help to improve…that’s commitment. Our joy in that moment was unaware of the health challenges that would arise, the job losses that would occur, the financial struggles to be endured, the challenges that our different personalities would present, nor the trials of family life. However, we have stayed together because of our commitment. Our life together has certainly had its challenges, but our commitment to each other has allowed us to face those challenges together and we are better for it as we have matured both in our outlook and our faith. We are more compassionate for others and occasionally are able to help others facing trials that we ourselves have had to endure. We have an imperfect human love that is wholly committed and is stronger now than the day we took our wedding vows as we have risen daily for more than 41 years to fulfill our vows to each other.
You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. Deuteronomy 6:5
Ultimately, our marriage commitment has endured because of our commitment to our Lord. We are just as imperfect in our faith as we are in our relationship, but we daily strive to be obedient servants. I regularly pray that God would give me a heart wholly devoted to Him so that my relationship with Him remains strong. When I am halfhearted, I falter, doubt and drift aimlessly. However, when my relationship with God is healthy, I love better, I respond to difficult circumstances with better clarity and grace, and I enjoy greater peace. When I am wholly committed to God I am a better husband, father, and friend. I cannot imagine my life without God.
And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27
No matter what type of commitment one is considering, achievement is guided by our heart. Are we wholly committed or halfhearted? When we are wholly devoted, we are “all in”; we put all of our might into achieving success. People often turn away from God when trials come because they forget that God is more concerned about maturing their soul, preparing them to be fruitful, and their eternal peace rather than their comfort in this life. Ultimately, their heart wasn’t fully engaged causing failure to recognize that our Heavenly Father is totally committed and will be with us, strengthen and guide us. The same is true in relationships. While I acknowledge that there are different types of relationships in our lives, here I’m referring to marriages, relatives, and close friends. Relationships often stagnate or fail when one or both parties fail to commit completely. When difficulties come, the relationship falters or after a series of events ends because one or both parties chooses to walk away. Further, there is often a domino effect. Often when someone turns from their relationship with God, their other relationships begin to fail and end as well. That’s why we are called to love God first and foremost and allow Him to direct our paths…and our relationships.
Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 1 Peter 4:8
Last week I discussed the fact that Love is an Action. Commitment is a series of loving actions that build trust, common history, common purpose, and provide a safe haven from the world. Last night Marie and I talked for a couple of hours about a variety of topics. We discussed the future, decisions that need to be made, concerns about how various choices would impact our lives as well as the past and how what we have learned should impact our current choices. We deliberated past hurts and challenges to our marriage. We covered current challenges that we are facing whether individually or as a couple. And finally, we talked about our spiritual challenges…mostly mine. It was a conversation that would have been more difficult 30 years ago, but last night it was peaceful and loving because our commitment to God and to each other allowed us to set aside our selfish tendencies and have a calm, healthy discussion. It is in a sense, reaping the harvest of obedience to God’s precepts and being faithful to our commitment.