Looking For A Few Good Men And Women

2 Chronicles 16:9 says, "For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him." It seems to me that God is on a quest to find people who are "fully" committed to Him. I wonder; is He finding any success in His quest? Maybe it is just a pastor thing but it seems to me that in the 20+ years I have been a pastor it is becoming more difficult to find these people God seems to be looking for. Oh I am not saying that there is no commitment within the body of Christ, but what 2 Chronicles 16:9 calls for are those who are "fully" committed.

I fear that much of the commitment of people today cannot be classified as "full" but rather as partial or conditional. It seems to me that many people (and my focus is really within the confines of the church) are only willing to commit to ministry or even attendance within the church if it does not inconvenience us or cause us to miss something else that we would really rather do or be at. I believe that we really need to take a close look within ourselves and see if in fact we may be guilty of what the Ephesian church was guilty of in Revelation 2:4 where God told them they had lost their first love. Is God in fact our first love or just one of many other loves? If you are married do you think your husband of wife would be OK with them being one of your many loves but not your first? I sincerely doubt it so why would we settle for letting God be one of many loves instead of our first love?

What is this "full" commitment God says He is seeking in His people? It is hard to qualify what this means because there is always the danger that I or anyone else will make what it means to be fully committed a laundry list of things we personally feel are important. So let me share with you some advice Suzanna Wesley (the mother of John Wesley founder of Methodism) share with her son John when he was struggling with an issue of faith. "Take this rule: Whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, or takes off your relish of spiritual things; in short, whatever increases the strength and authority of your body over your mind: that thing is sin to you, however innocent it may be in itself."

I would challenge you to use this rule of Suzanna Wesley as a guideline for being fully committed to God and His plan for your life. I think it would be hard to go astray taking this godly advice.

Sincerely,
Pastor Sheldon