Freedom ~ Commitment

Greetings Dear Reader,

I wonder if we truly understand the nature of commitment.  When I make a commitment I am giving up a piece of my freedom.  This is why it needs to be voluntary and fully reasoned.  When I choose to give my word on something then I must not think that I am free to do as I wish.

Our society, including me, does not always see this as clearly as it should.  I have worked hard to become someone who does what he says he will do.  It is not a little thing to fail at this even in little things.  I am not speaking of implied consent or unjust expectations of others.  My only concern is with the things we say that we do not do.

My friend Tina recently asked for regular prayer for a new situation that is challenging her experience and comfort.  I told her I would pray for her.  I put my favorite picture of her in a place where I see it daily so that I remember to pray for her needs.  Too often we tell others we will support them and we fail to do it.

It is too easy to say we will do something small and forget about it in the next moment.  It is too common to make big commitments and abandon them when it gets hard to keep them.  If I cannot fulfill something I must not commit to it. 

It is damaging to the fabric of who we are to think that once we have committed to something that we are free to do otherwise.  When I commit to something I give up my freedom to choose what to do.  I may appeal if circumstances change.  I may even ask to be released from my commitment.   My heart, however, must be focused on committing only to things that I can do and then doing them with all my ability. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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Commitment – To God – Closing Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

Throughout this I have been careful to avoid directly referencing commitments that we make to God.  I realize that not everyone who reads this believes what I believe.  For those of you who do not follow Christ you may consider this a way to hold accountable those of us who do.

Eccl 5:4 When you make a promise to God, don't be slow to keep it because God doesn't like fools. Keep your promise.

These are the words of Solomon.   We do not hesitate to quote him when we wish to appear wise or make a point about wisdom.  We must also embrace him when we dwell upon commitment.  Christ followers make commitments to God.  It is the nature of following.

So Dear Reader we must always consider those commitments when we act, think, or breathe.  Jesus made this much simpler for us:

Mat 5:33-37
"You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, 'Never break your oath, but give to the Lord what you swore in an oath to give him.' But I tell you don't swear an oath at all. Don't swear an oath by heaven, which is God's throne, Or by the earth, which is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, which is the city of the great King. And don't swear an oath by your head. After all, you cannot make one hair black or white. Simply say yes or no. Anything more than that comes from the evil one.

When we say yes to what Christ asks of us we are bound to it.  We come up with many reasons, excuses, and pretenses as to why we do not need to keep our commitment to God but the truth is they are useless.  We even fool ourselves into believing that unbelief will free us from our commitments.  We think that because God is slow to call in our debt of commitment that he will not.  

Whether we continue to sing in the choir or abandon our faith altogether our commitments to God are still alive.  It I say yes to follow Christ it means I say yes to all of it.  I take up the cross.  I follow when it is easy and when it kills me.  I keep my commitment when I doubt or when my faith roars like a lion.  

The measure of who I am is forged in my faithfulness to my commitment to Christ.  I have failed so often that I still feel shame when I think about it.  I have markers I have placed in my life to help not forget my vows to God.  I have daily reminders that I have bound my life to Christ and am wholly his.  I carry the symbol of my oath with me always.  I have said yes to Christ and do not wish to be a fool.

There are daily temptations to be other than what I have committed to be in Christ.  I could have many things I desire if I simply leave behind my fealty.  Darkness and false light both offer me solace if I will only abandon my faith for something less restricting.

I have broken oaths, promises, vows, and commitments.  I know the bitter taste of those acts coming home to roost.  I know what it is to be the fool who has broken faith with God.  When tempted to abandon faith for some more convenient I have only one response:  “I have promises to keep and miles to go before I sleep.”

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening – Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.  
His house is in the village though;  
He will not see me stopping here  
To watch his woods fill up with snow.  

My little horse must think it queer  
To stop without a farmhouse near  
Between the woods and frozen lake  
The darkest evening of the year.  

He gives his harness bells a shake  
To ask if there is some mistake.  
The only other sound’s the sweep  
Of easy wind and downy flake.  

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,  
But I have promises to keep,  
And miles to go before I sleep,  
And miles to go before I sleep.


Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”
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Commitment - Integrity

Greetings Dear Reader,

Integrity is one of those things you either possess or you do not.  If we do not do what we commit to do then we do not have integrity.  Integrity signifies that something is whole.  If we do not keep our commitments we are not whole.

The damage done when we break a commitment may not be obvious at first.  Still it creates fissures in our being that multiply.  We lose the trust of those impacted by our failure.  Breaking one commitment makes easier to break another.  Eventually it can become part of our character. 

That we are known as habitually late or that we cancel things at the last minute should be something we abhor.  We must not treat any commitment as mundane.  If we think that we may need to change our plans we must not commit.  If we commit we need to realize that we have given our time, efforts, or availability to someone else.

I have become much more careful about the commitments I make.  I try to recognize when things are outside of my control and not commit to things I cannot control.  I cannot change the times in the past that I have not had integrity.  I can be integral today.

It seems that like so many other things, following Christ in the moment means having integrity in the moment.  We can make a habit of being honest.  We can make it our nature to keep our commitments.  We have to do so by doing it in the moment every moment.

Making a commitment means I choose to have integrity in future moments.  It is giving my assurance that I will do a thing in the future.  When I break a commitment I create fissures in my integrity.  It is only through keeping my word that those fissures can heal.  

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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Commitment - Oaths

Greetings Dear Reader,

“An oath is a solemn commitment that often involves invoking a divine witness and is relative to future behaviour.”   We primarily see oaths from those entering the military, law enforcement, medicine, and politics.  All of our national Presidents have taken this oath:

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

The presidential oath is taken most of the time with his hand on a Bible.  The public nature of this type of commitment should be inviolable.   Oaths and vows deal with future actions.  We promise to do or not do something.  We give assurances that the thing that we are being entrusted with will be completed faithfully.

So much of an oath is related to acts of faith.  We are bound to act in the promised way for the duration of the time we are entrusted with the office or duty.  I wonder if we understand the full weight of that type of commitment.  Since we cannot foresee all circumstances we are promising to act a certain way no matter what happens.  This is a serious faith based commitment.

I am not talking about faith in God.  It is faith in our own fortitude that is involved in an oath.  I will do “X” no matter what happens with “Y”.   This is not only binding it is open ended.  It does not surprise me that Jesus cautioned us about swearing oaths.  It is not that we should not take them but that we should understand the full weight of them.

It keeps coming back to personal integrity.  I must be complete in my loyalty to the words I say.  I must be honorable and honest.  I must be the one who governs my actions so that they adhere to my word.  An oath is making clear that to which I am saying “yes”. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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Commitment - Bonds

Greetings Dear Reader,

In the universe of Star Trek the race of Klingons are experts and insults.  Arguably the most intense insult one can level at a Klingon is “tokhe straav'” or “willing slave”.  We would call that individual a “bond slave” or one who has willingly bound their life to the servant of another.

We make commitments with legal standing.  Bonds are commitments that carry the force of law.  Breaking them has consequences beyond the social and spiritual ones.  In the ancient world servant could choose to become a Bond Servant when offered freedom.  They would then bind their lives to a household forever.  The Greek word for this is Doulos.  A ring in the ear of this willing slave told all who saw him that he was not for sale.

A financial bond is a promise to appear at trial when accused of a crime.  Our word is to be our bond and no other thing should be necessary.  Because we violate our commitments we have to offer assurance that we will do as we say.  Bonds should not be necessary in our world.  Our commitment should be enough.

A popular song from my youth said that the man wished   “…to know that I’m not shackled by forgotten words and bonds and ink stains that have dried upon some line…”  We avoid being bound to things when there are things to which I must be bound.

My word must be my bond.  I must be bound to Christ and his commands to love and peace.  I must give away my freedom to be his bond servant.  The world must know that I am not for sale.  I have been purchased, redeemed, set free, and then freely stepped back into the role of bond slave to Christ.  It is not logical but it is true that this is where true freedom lives.

Doulos – Kemper Crabb

You are my God

And I am your man

I will follow you

With the work of my hand

And the thoughts of my mind

And the love of my heart

If the world could know

If they could understand

Ah, the exquisite touch

Of the Creator's hand

Brings a blur to my eye

But makes my vision clear

Ring, rainbow ring

Encircles the throne

Fiery ring of love

Around your own

A golden ring to show

Just where I stand

A ring that binds my heart

Into your hand

And looking back across the years

I can see that you were constantly there

Constant creation

That’s what I am

As you are making me into your man

Here is my ear

Drive through the nail

The world will know

By the ring that I wear

That I am not for sale

For you are my God

And I am your man

Ring, rainbow ring

Encircles the throne

Fiery ring of love

Around your own

A golden ring to show

Just where I stand

A ring that binds my heart

Into your hand

For You are my God

And I am your man

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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Commitment - Pledge

Greetings Dear Reader,

A solemn promise relative to an undertaking is called a pledge.  The most commonly known pledge in this country is the Pledge of Allegiance.  I recall saying it every morning in primary school.  It is simple and short:

“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

We pledge ourselves to endeavors, symbols, and causes.  We speak formatted words or agree to take certain actions for a purpose.  Again we are submitting our will to an endeavor.  Pledges are commitments to a cause.

When we pledge ourselves to the cause of Christ it is no small things.  We pledge this so often in the formatted prayers and hymns we sing.  I do not think we ponder the weight of the words we say and sing. 

A Christ follower is called to a cause.  We are to use love, kindness, and grace to teach others to follow Christ.  So many of us have pledged our lives to this cause.  Living out the command to teach others to follow Christ does not require us to speak any proscribed words.  We are pledged to this cause by our commitment to Christ.

This is a cause I gladly renew my pledge to each morning.  I sit for a moment and take in what God has to say to me through the Bible.  I then ponder how I will live out that message in my commitment to teach others to love and forgive.  Some days are diamonds and some days are coal. 

The Pledge – DeGarmo and Key

He died for me, I'll live for him.

It's a world of choices, patterned to confuse,

Distracting, little voices whisper what to do,

Searching for the pieces, one step from the edge,

Turn your heart to Jesus, make this solemn pledge...

He died for me, I'll live for him,

He died for me, I'll live for him.

Above all lords and regents, he is king of kings,

I'm pledging my allegiance through these words I sing,

Take this oath of service; write it on your wall,

It's our only purpose for living life at all.

He died for me, I'll live for him,

He died for me, I'll live for him.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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Commitment - Vows

Greetings Dear Reader,

At some point we decided that promises were not enough so we made stronger promises and called them vows.  We applied these new and improved promises to solemn occasions.  We pick out lofty words.  We intone these words in front of witnesses. 

Vows are a big deal.  They are words that are supposed to be forged in the titanium of the soul.  They must be etched into who we are when we speak them.  They are taken voluntarily.  Once forged, vows are permanent unless they contain a terminus.

 And yet we break them.  I have broken sacred vows.  I have had others break vows them have made to me.  In the darkness of the heart and deception of the mind we decided that the vows we make are breakable.  We rationalize, justify, and lie to make breaking those vows palatable to our souls.

We don’t seek the permission of the witnesses.  We don’t honor the person or people to whom we make the vow.  We convince ourselves that what we want is a priority over the vows we make to others. 

I have learned through failure and pain that breaking vows leaves a permanent mark on me.  I think as humans we know that this is the case and it why we hold vows in such solemn esteem when making them.  A vow is sacred and our abandonment of it never makes it null and void.

It Ain’t Yours to Throw Away – Clare Bowen & Sam Palladio

That same road that brought you here

Will sure as hell take you home

The life you left behind will have you back

You're tired of paying dues in worn out shoes

And Broadway blues

And any fool will tell you

The damn ol' deck is stacked

What if you're just a vessel?

And God gave you something special

It ain't yours to throw away

It ain't yours to throw away

Every time you open up your mouth

Diamonds come rolling out

It ain't yours to throw away

No...

And all of the players, the movers, and shakers

The story maker suits have gone home

You drew the last slot

You thought it was your shot

But now it's just one more chance blown

What if you're just a vessel?

And God gave you something special

It ain't yours to throw away

It ain't yours to throw away

Every time you open up your mouth

Diamonds come rolling out

It ain't yours to throw away

No...

And our town is cold as January

Life comes true, and dreams get buried

Every day...

Destiny won't be denied

It ain't yours to throw away

No, it ain't yours to throw away

'Cause every time you open up your mouth

Diamonds come rolling out

It ain't yours to throw away

It ain't yours to throw away ...

Throw away

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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Commitment - Promises

Greetings Dear Reader,

I wonder how often we consider that asking someone to promise something implies a level of mistrust.  The implication is that one saying he or she will do something is not enough.  It asks for a commitment beyond the commitment of yes or no.

Photo by Marissa Voo

It creates an implied contract “higher” or more serious than just saying you will or will not do something.  Even though our yes or no should be enough we make the issue more serious when we promise.  We enter in a contract that limits our choices and freedom.

When we make a promise we give the power over to the holder of the promise.  This becomes a deep measure of our character.  When we promise a lover that we will never leave them we give up our right to leave.  When we promise to stay at a job for a certain amount of time we are committed to that time.   We put ourselves in debt to the holder of the promise to pay what we have promised.

Breaking a promise is more than violating your yes or no.  It is tearing something away from the holder of your promise.  We reach into the mind or heart of the promise carrier and destroy the trust and confidence they hold.  We say clearly that we are willing to damage someone else to do as we want. 

The other aspect of this is that we think once the promise is violated we are free.  This is a lie.  Until the holder of the promise releases us from it every act that follows the path is tainted.  It does not mean that we cannot do good after that point in time.  It does mean that we still owe a debt.    

I ponder the promises I have broken along the journey and the damage this has done.  I have sought forgiveness where I could.  Further I have sought release where possible.  We are not free of the debt of a promise until the commitment is paid or we are released from it.  Even now some minor debts of time and service spring to mind that I must attend to. 

As a Christ follower I must remember to follow the example that we have from God of keeping a promise.  Peter points out that “The Lord isn't slow to do what he promised, as some people think. Rather, he is patient for your sake. He doesn't want to destroy anyone but wants all people to have an opportunity to turn to him and change the way they think and act.”

I must do what I say I will do when I say I will do it.  For all of us there are promises back there that may require some humility and faith for us to fulfill.  The holder of those promises is owed a debt.  There are consequences for not paying that debt.  Unfortunately we do not see them all and fool ourselves into thinking we are free.  Keeping them out of love for Christ should be our first step.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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Commitment – Opening Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

I have been searching for a particular kind of bow for someone.  He is just learning to shoot and it is something I love.  I thought I found just the right one this past weekend.  Instead I had found the right model but with cracks in the recurve. 

One of the things I was taught when I first learned to shoot a bow was to inspect the recurve for cracks before I string it.  A bow can shatter when strung if it has cracks in it.  The integrity of the bow must be verified before one trusts it under tension.

Before I became serious about being more invested in grace and mercy commitments were almost debilitating for me.  I would get frozen in the moment of someone not keeping his or her word.  It would damage my trust and my friendship with the individual.

Eventually I learned that if the individual is not going to keep a commitment forcing him to do so or demanding that she do it only does damage to the parties involved.  The relationship is damaged long before the commitment is broken.  A person is broken long before he or she begins violating promises, commitments, and vows.

It still troubles me greatly that the integrity of our society continues to fray and tatter.  Christ followers are to be known by the love shown to others.  If we are to have any credibility with those who do not respect our beliefs we must have integrity.  It is in keeping our commitments that we become dependable. 

If I am to understand this enough for it to be a part of who I am naturally I must assure that I have thought through what people and God expect.  Although commitment seems like a simple thing I think there is an underlying complexity to it.  I think  a little vivisection of the idea of commitment will serve to cement my understanding of just what I am doing when I say “yes” to anything.  Walk with me a feel free to join the conversation. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

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