Articles
Have We A Zealous Commitment?
About commitment; recently I read its real meaning expressed more clearly than ever before. Gary Henry quotes Robert Moorehead to have said, “My face is set; my gait is fast; my goal is Heaven; my road is narrow; my way is rough; my companions are few; my guide is reliable; my mission is clear. I cannot be bought; compromised; detoured; lured away; turned back; diluted; or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice; hesitate in the presence of adversity; negotiate at the table of the enemy; ponder at the pool of popularity; or meander in a maze of mediocrity. I won’t give up; shut up; let up; or slow up.”
If those words don’t describe your commitment; you do not have one. You just have a wish! Maybe good intentions, but not commitment. Get yourself a love for God and commit to it with the soul of a warrior who will, “either conquer or perish with honor.” (General George S. Patton)
The verb ‘trifle’ means to deal with something as if it were of little significance or value; to speak or act with little seriousness or purpose; to play or toy with something. When we trifle with God; when we pretend to love Him dearly, but give Him no more than our leftovers, is it not a trick we are trying to play on God? Do we think God does not notice our lack of zealous commitment?
“For many of us a right relationship with God is seen as an important ‘part’ of ‘the good life’ which every well-rounded individual should address, but it is certainly not the whole of things. Jesus says it must be more than a vital interest; it must become the reigning passion of our existence. All that hungry people can think of is food.” (Paul Earnhart)
In the beatitudes Jesus said with sharp clarity, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. (Matthew 5:6) “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8) Those who shall be filled are those who hunger for God with a hunger that is desperate; those who long for Him with a passion that will not be denied.
“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. (Luke 9:23-24)
"Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good?” (1 Peter 3:13) Now is the time to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, living with the kind of zealous commitment that delights God.
With brotherly affection,
Andy
