Choose this day who you will serve.… Joshua 24:15
A man, who we will call Tom, was raised in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. His parents divorced when he was ten years old, and after that time he had relatively little contact with his father.
Tom did well at school and liked to play the trumpet, but he gave it up when he was 14 because he didn’t really enjoy practicing.
Tom dated several girls in college, for about six months each. But when a girl began to get serious, he backed away.
After graduation Tom took a job in sales. But then less than a year later, a rival company offered him a similar position with additional perks. Tom said the offer was “too good to pass up.”
Tom is now 35 and he professes faith in Jesus Christ, but he has more questions than answers. Tom joined a small group last year, but it didn’t work out. Tom is frustrated with his spiritual life, and he feels that as he gets older, he simply becomes more confused.
All of us have given up on something, and at times rightly so. But do you see Tom’s problem? Tom has never really been committed to anything. This pattern was modeled in his childhood, cultivated in his youth, and now invades every area of his life, including his faith.
Tom’s problem lies in the area of commitment. It isn’t just that Tom has difficulty in committing to Christ; it is that Tom has difficulty in committing to anything. He is dealing with doubts that have their root in the will, and the only way in which they can be answered is through a wholehearted, unreserved, irreversible decision.
What are some things you have given up on? Is there a pattern in your life of giving up on things too early?
