Talking about Commitment…

I would like to start this post by being personal about my faith because it is essential not only for the grade I will receive on this project, but for the readers that might be going through some of the same experiences I have gone through.  Commitment to something or someone is such a great thing, but it is also something that takes a lot of work and dedication.  Commitment comes with relationship because one is accountable to the other for the process and the outcome.  Peace points out various questions that are important to talk about as we talk about our conversion and commitment experiences with others that I think are very helpful and direct us through the right direction in our faith.  I found it challenging and helpful to think about some of the questions and answers.

“What did your “act of commitment” to Jesus look like?  Or how did you know that you had at that point become a follower of Jesus?”
My act of commitment was not something forced, but was something about faith.  The fact that I am committed to Christ and obedience to God the Father does not mean that I do not have a life.  A lot of people view Christians as lifeless and boring because they think that we lose the ability to live in society, but on the contrary.  When I gave my life to God and committed to live in obedience was the first time that I truly knew what it was to live.  It was no longer me living a pointless life, but God living through me in a way that everything I did had a purpose and point for doing.  Believing in Jesus did not come with fireworks and a big party, but it was more of a personal thing I did.  My commitment to Jesus Christ was something I decided on my own and wrestled with for a long time.  The relationship I have with Christ is one of faith and trust.  I knew that I had become a follower of Christ because I longed to live in obedience to God and the standards for my life.  This does not mean that I immediately became a prisoner of Christ or God, but I decided to live in humility and submission to God.  It was no longer me living a life of selfishness but about a life of relationship and community with Christ and the body of believers.

For Randy describes his commitment to his faith as discipline.  Randy finds that it that his commitment to his faith and how he lives out the philosophies of Buddha are best kept though the discipline of his actions and how he keeps himself accountable.  The act of committing to the faith was not something that came with a big revelation or a big celebration, but it was something of realization.  It was at a point in his life that Randy really connected with the philosophies of Buddha, which were things he had always thought about, but now his ideas had a name and a source.  It was not a “conversion” Randy had to go through, but a realization.  I would not say that Randy has changed to a new religion, but into a new way of life.  His way of life just happens to be in correlation with the Buddhist traditions because he is able to find connection and relevance for his life.  Now, Randy lives in accordance to the “Four Noble Truths”.
     1.  There is suffering in this world
     2.  Desire is the cause of suffering
     3.  You can stop suffrage in this world
     4.  The way is through following the Eight Fold Pathways

“What does “conscious commitment” bring to a person’s life?  Why is it important?”
I think that conscious commitment is a genuine and rational agreement with an individual and their God to live a life of obedience and love.  We are not called to be robots (and it is important for all people to understand this) because God does not want mechanical things to worship him.  But God desires human beings that genuinely have a desire to worship to enter into a commitment with God.  A conscious commitment comes when one comes to the realization that they need something else in their lives.  The commitment comes when they realize that they cannot have hope without something or someone to hold on to, and to me that is Christ.  To have a conscious commitment is important because that commitment becomes a lifestyle that takes effort and sacrifice.  Living a committed life to Christ means giving up a lot of things and adopting others.  The life is not about self pleasure but about community building that leads people to Christ.  It is much easier to live a life of selfish pleasures without giving account to anyone, but that leads to self destruction.  So a conscious commitment means that one is intentional in changing their lives in order to live for something better… a cause.

Conscious commitment for Randy brings about truth.  Truth is anything one is looking for to find meaning for their lives.  Truth for individuals are those things that bring about desired results and personal goals.  For some people that conscious commitment brings about knowledge, peace, and even the hope of salvation.  A conscious commitment is important because people are doing it for the right reasons.  They are not committing to something or someone because it is something out of culture or tradition, but because they genuinely know what they are getting themselves into.  Commitment is something that is born of them and it is an expression of their true self.

My experience of coming to Christ was not about a prayer.  My conversion was not a magical thing marked by “sinners prayer”, but about a desire to have a relationship with God who is superior than I am.  An individual who sees things from a postmodern point of view would see this as mechanical, but my conversion was about building a relationship with Jesus Christ in which through him I have access to the Father.  My journey that led me to Christ was not an easy one, but now that I am a follower of Christ I am truly grateful that God sought me because if it was left up to me I would have never had a relationship with Christ that I have today.  I do not know the exact day or time of when I considered myself a follower of Christ, but I know that I truly love my God because he is so evident in my life and in the lives of others.  As much as I fought him in the past, God just kept on coming back and seeking me out. 

I look back at the way my life used to be and I am truly grateful that I can have a relationship with Christ because my life has never been the same.  I am not saying that my life has been easy since I became a follower of Christ (just look at the grad school program I am in) but my life has had more meaning and purpose since.  The commitment I have with God is not one based on fear or shame, but of constant edification.  I love worshiping God because God is everything I am not.  I have no desire to be like God, but I do long to be obedient to him.  Many postmodern thinkers might say that living under the rules of a “god” is no life at all because one cannot define what is bad, sin, or even what is a good rule.  But the way I see my God is not through a modern or postmodern point of view because my God is beyond that.  My God is and was in control of the past, present and future.  Just look at creation and you will realize that there is a Creator, and that Creator longs to have a relationship with humanity. 

People sometimes get too caught up in rituals and “rights of passage”, but Christianity is not about that.  Randy and I grew up Catholics and the majority of our faith revolved around the idea that we had to do certain things in order to prove out faith and loyalty to the faith, which discouraged us both about what we believed.  So much that it left a sour taste in Randy’s mouth about what it means to be a Christian.  For me, Christianity and my faith is not about what I do or do not do in order to prove my faith, but it is about a relationship with God.  Sure, there are things I desire to do in order to live in obedience to my faith but I do not think that I am called to live a ritualistic life that can become so mundane.  God wants authenticity and not a performance. 

We cannot force anyone to commit to anything or anyone they do not feel a connection with.  Instead, as Christians, we are to live a life of love and acceptance for those that do not share the same commitments as we do.  Christians have acquired a dangerous trait of judging.  But we are not to force them to live a life of commitment to a God they barely know, instead we are to live lives that are committed to praying for them and loving them regardless of what they believe.  God is ultimately in control, and we have to remember that we are not the ones that look for God, but God looks for us.  Christianity is not about numbers and results, but about relationships.

~ by Alex on April 30, 2008.