By Pastor James Fleck
There was a man who was shipwrecked on a deserted island. When his rescuers arrived to deliver him they noticed he had built three huts. They asked him what the purpose of each hut was. He pointed to the first one and said, “That one is my house and the one in the middle is my church.” The rescuers were shocked when they asked about the purpose of the third hut and the man responded, “Oh, that’s the church I used to attend.”
Daily, any commitments we have made are being challenged by outside influences. The institution of marriage is being attacked with infidelity and the desire to pursue “greener pastures.” Families are being pulled apart by undisciplined fathers, mothers and children. The workplace is being uprooted by employees who have lost the attitude of “taking pride in their work” and the church is being shaken by pettiness and the lack of commitment.
Webster’s Dictionary defines commitment as “an act of committing to a charge or trust” and the word commit is defined as, “obligate, or bind.” So, when we make a commitment, we are bound to a charge or trust. That means we are bound to marriage, family, work and the church. You might ask, “Must I remain faithful to my commitment if things have changed in my relationships? What if events have occurred that give me reason to just walk away?”
Let’s address marriage and the family first. Jesus in Matthew 19 is confronted by the religious leaders who want to know if it’s OK to divorce your wife. He responds with, “What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder.” Jesus adds that the only time divorce is allowed is in the case of infidelity. God is a God of reconciliation and as a pastor I have seen marriages where infidelity was an issue find healing and restoration. This is not meant to be condemning, but I think we give up too easily when we are faced with difficulties or we lose the fuzzy feeling inside. We have the responsibility to set a good example for our children to follow.
Next we want to look at work. The word pretty much defines itself. There may be some sweat involved as well as intense physical labor and mental stress. The Apostle Paul gave this commandment to the church at Thessalonica (I Thess. 3:10): “If any does not work, neither should they eat.” Some treat their job like a pair of socks — they change them everyday. I understand conditions may not always be what we would like them to be, but we should persevere. In 1 Peter 2:18-23, Peter tells employees they must accept the authority of their bosses, both the kind and reasonable and also the ones who are harsh. I remember years ago hearing a song that proclaimed, “Take this job and shove it” and later hearing the rebuttal which stated, “I wish I had a job to shove.” The Apostle Paul said, “... whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Cor. 10:31) You have an obligation. Produce a quality product, give 110 percent whether it’s acknowledged or not and let your thanks be a job well done.
Lastly, I want to address our commitment to the church, I am fortunate to have people within my congregation who have been here for more than 50 years. Did they stay here because this is the “perfect” church? You have got to be kidding. Since the church’s beginning in August 1923, we have had people come and go for ridiculous reasons as well as for some that were quite serious in nature. The faithful ones did not leave because of a thing called commitment. They bound themselves to this ministry and have weathered every storm that has blown through the doors. I understand there are times when leadership sins or the church fails but this is not always a sign from heaven that it’s time to move on. Maybe it’s an opportunity to put the mercy and grace of God into action.
Let’s stop building more huts and recommit ourselves to the ones we already have — our marriage, family, job and church.
James Fleck is pastor of Oasis Family Worship Center, Hermitage.
