Are You Committed?

Every girl has that first high school crush experience where we thought we were in the most serious relationship of our lives.  We thought just because he let us share his locker or he had a candy-gram delivered to our homeroom on Valentine’s Day in front of everyone that he was “the one.”  Although those feelings were so exciting to me at the time, it was also my first introduction to this word, commitment…or the lack thereof.  I found out at a young age that one of the worst feelings I would experience was being 100% invested into someone that was only 50% invested in me. It’s those times where you go out of your way to accommodate someone just to find out that the time and dedication you are giving to the relationship isn’t being reciprocated.  If you’ve never been in a situation like this before then be grateful, because it’s an awful feeling. I remember whining to one of my friend’s one night about how I felt like I was being used by this guy and I remember using these exact words, “I feel like I’m always wanting him more than he’s wanting me.”  There are very few feelings worst than being in a relationship all by yourself.  Fortunately, I healed from this situation, as most of us do, and vowed that I would never commit myself to someone who wasn’t willing to commit to me.  I didn’t want to feel the heartbreak of making someone my priority who was only making me an option.  I didn’t want to devote all my time and energy in someone who only wanted me when their plan A or B fell through. I didn’t want someone to just call me when they needed something.  But how dare I make such strong demands in my relationships and turn and do those exact same things in my relationship with Christ?

"Christianity isn't a title, it's a lifestyle."

Everyone’s quick to put God in their twitter bio and in their Facebook “about me” section, but how many of us are truly committed to Him?  I was always taught growing up that you go by a person’s actions and not just their words.  It’s easy to give God credit with our lips, but what about our life? What’s the real relationship like behind closed doors?  When it’s just you and Him?  How invested are you really? Do you hit him up only when you need something? Or as a last resort when you’ve decided all your “other options” fell through?  Or are we putting Him first and seeking Him for every single thing that takes place in our lives?  We often say what we would never do in our relationship or marriage yet we show no remorse when we cheat on God every day.   Christianity isn’t a title, it’s a lifestyle.  No one wants to be in a relationship where your significant other treats you no differently than he/she treats anyone else.  In the same breath, we can’t say we love God, but place Him on the same level as every other thing in our lives.  There has to be a difference.  There has to be a commitment. 

"When you're committed to someone, you're willing to do what it takes to change."

I’m often asked, “what made me decide to all the sudden give up certain things and become more committed in my relationship with Christ?”  Of course this can’t be answered in one sentence, but I basically came to a place in my life where I realized how unfaithful I had been to such a faithful God. But one thing I can say for sure, and make no doubt about it, I didn’t “all the sudden” decide anything.  It was NOT an overnight process and I am STILL working towards being a better Christian every day, but the change started when my commitment started. When I started thinking about how highly God thought of me and how much of a priority I was to Him, but yet He came second and in some cases last in so many areas of my life. When I made up in my mind that I wanted to honor God more than I wanted to please my flesh it became easier and easier to turn down things that once gave me so much pleasure.  When you’re committed to someone, you’re willing to do what it takes to change. You no longer make decisions based off of how it benefits you, there’s now someone else to consider.

"God doesn't want you to be perfect in order to make a commitment, He just wants......you."

Three years ago I made the decision to become committed to my relationship with Christ. I now realize the things that were so hard for me to give up were absolutely nothing compared to the things I’ve gained.  It hasn’t been easy and there have been times where I’ve stepped out on the relationship, but I can honestly say it has been the most rewarding and satisfying decision that I ever chose to make.  God doesn’t want you to be perfect in order to make a commitment…..He just wants…..you.  So let me ask you, are you willing to commit?