Commitments.  They define us.  If we are true to a commitment, it means that we can expect future decisions to be made based on an initial commitment.  That will sometimes be painful for it may mean other choices will need to be made in the interest of a commitment.  Those who have committed their lives to Jesus Christ, know that certain actions, habits, and people are no longer a part of one’s life.  Similarly, those who live in Jesus know that the blessings one yields from a relationship with Him cannot be matched in quality or measure by any other person or means.
 
Commitments cost us something.  When we feel a hurt due to a death of someone or something to which we have been committed, there can be deep pain when that ending comes.  But if one has tried to live up to that commitment while there has been opportunity to do so, conclusions that come–for whatever reason–are not filled with regret.  Endings in life bring a degree of melancholy.  The degree of it is determined in part by the manner in which we invested ourselves in someone or something while there was time.  Endings in life that produce sadness due to regrets give us the opportunity to pray to the Lord and ask for help to live differently in the future toward others.  We cannot change what has been.  But those who live in Jesus Christ possess the magnificence of His redemptive power to transform what has been and what shall be into peaceful acceptance.  
 
Lord Jesus, in You we live and move and have our being.  Thank You for the commitments made to You, to others, to our work and our callings.  Sometimes commitments require us to pass on other choices set before us, even apparent good choices.  Help us, Lord, to seek You for wisdom, strength, and courage to do all You would have us to do to make and keep commitments such so we know Your peace.  In Thee, Lord Jesus, Amen.

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