The great divide between those who believe in God and those who are committed to Him is one word: Choice. Through the years I’ve talked a lot about this word “choice” because as you know, your choices shape your future. The key to making the authentic choice to honor God in all areas of your life is commitment. Commitment = Choosing to live for what you believe.
In order to become the person God wants you to be, you have to not only believe in God, but also choose to live for Him. You’ll never be who you should be until you become committed to living for God.
Making mistakes doesn’t mean you’re not committed to God. It’s impossible for you to live a perfect life. But it’s not impossible to live a committed life. However, that won’t happen without your active involvement. This means you have a role to play. You, and only you, are responsible for your choices.
Choose responsibility by choosing:
- to spend more time in God’s word.
- to pray that God will shape you into a person of true integrity.
- to avoid hanging out with people who live against God’s will.
- to get back up and try again after failing.
Unfortunately, Satan knows this too. After the lies have been sold, after your belief has been changed, and after the sin is committed, you’d think Satan would be satisfied with his successes. But no. He then gets ready to deliver the knock-out punch. Once you’re down, Satan wants to keep you there. So once again, the lies begin to fly as Satan invites you into the “neverland.”
“Look what you’ve done now. God will never love you.”
“You’ll never get it right. God will never use you.”
“God will never accept you.”
“God will never make you into the person He wants you to be.”
And all too often, we choose to buy the lies again. We choose to believe that we’ll never be good enough, never be godly enough, and never become who God desires.
Is this where Satan has you right now? Have you bought the lie that God’s way is the wrong way? Or because of something you’ve done wrong in your past, do you believe that God could never really use you to do something great for Him? If so, then you’re choosing to allow God’s work in you to be halted. You’re choosing to let Satan use your past to hold you back and convince you that you can never experience a committed relationship with God.
You’ve got to understand why Satan works so hard to sell you lies. Satan knows the truth about you. God sees the real you, but Satan sees who you are too. He sees your potential and your abilities. He knows God made you, and he knows God never makes a mistake. He clearly understands that you’ve been created for an incredible plan. And he’s scared. More scared than Myley Cyrus is about the future of her singing career post-Disney. He’s scared of the person you are, and more importantly, the person you’ll become. He knows that if he can convince you to buy the lies, he can keep you from ever becoming who God created you to be. And that’ll keep you from influencing others to be followers of Christ too.
If you have heard me speak before, then you probably know that after trying unsuccessfully for almost four years to get Amy’s (my wife) attention, I could’ve chosen to give up. Instead, I chose to go get that girl and make her mine. And, what a blessing it is that she and I are now together – forever! My point: I made the choice to pursue Amy. And pursue her. And pursue her. Of course, God’s the reason Amy and I are together now. But the point is I didn’t give up. I was active. I chose to keep going. Now, I’m not encouraging you to keep asking out someone who shows you little to no interest. That might be considered stalking. But when it comes to your commitment to God, you’ve got to make the choice—and keep making it over and over again. You can believe the lies Satan whispers in your ear and give up. Or you can choose to continue on God’s path and take Him at His word that He has a plan in store for you that is far greater than anything you can ever plan on your own!
