So many of us start each New Year motivated to change. We make resolutions about diets, finances, and housework, but they seldom stick. We read books to try to increase our chances of success and then even more books to try to figure out what went wrong. And it often seems that things go wrong. The weight comes back, the house is a mess after our schedule gets blown, and it always rains on our best efforts with the budget. We were so motivated. So what did go wrong?
There is a difference between motivation and commitment. Motivation is defined as the general desire or willingness of someone to do something. Motivation can wax and wane depending on our circumstances. Commitment is different. It is defined as an agreement or pledge to do something. It means we do something no matter how motivated we are at any particular moment in time. Commitment is when it clicks that it isn’t about feelings, pain, or convenience, but that it is about our mind. It is all mental. Quitting begins in our mind. Commitment begins in our mind. Commitment denies the desires of self to maintain our pledge. Until we understand that, we are only motivated.
Our walk with God is a commitment. There are growing pains, times when things don’t make sense, when our spiritual gas tank is low, when we feel we are going more backwards than forwards – times when we know we are in the valley. But God is already committed to us. He won’t let go. We too, must commit to not letting go. We can’t be just motivated to follow God, we must be committed to following God.
