An Overflow of Commitment

“In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the LORD. And she made a vow, saying, ‘O LORD Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.’ …. After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was … and brought him to the house of the LORD at Shiloh…. ‘I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD.’” (1 Sam 1:10-11; 24; 27-28 NIV)

It has been said that a picture is worth a thousand words. I believe that a picture painted in one’s mind may be worth even more! It is amazing what the imagination can do. I believe this is one of the reasons that Jesus taught in parables and stories, so that the listeners could paint in their mind the picture of truth that He was telling. You see, I own my picture but I do not own yours! The principle is this: “When you discover truth for yourself then you possess it in a way that makes it really and truly yours.” (William Barclay)

My father used to tell me this short story to impress upon me the importance and nature of making a commitment. “Son,” he used to say, “when it comes to breakfast, the chicken contributes but the pig is committed!” Now, take a few moments and paint that picture of truth in your mind. Better yet, sit down to a nice hot breakfast of bacon or sausage and eggs and consider the difference of what it cost the chicken and the pig to provide your meal! The chicken lives to contribute to another breakfast but the pig has given his all!

Unless he is like the special three-legged pig that lived on the farm. A passerby noticed the three-legged pig playing with the farmer’s children and stopped to inquire about the odd animal. The pig could do tricks and seemed to be more like a pet than a farm animal. The farmer explained that the pig was special and had saved the family by rescuing them from a house fire. The passerby inquired if the pig had lost his leg in the fire. The farmer said, “Oh no, but he is so special we couldn’t eat him all at once!” (Another one of my dad’s stories!)

Hannah asked the Lord for a son and made the commitment to give him to the Lord “all” the days of his life if the Lord would answer her prayer. She didn’t say that she would give him to the Lord for a while but for “all” his days. Hannah literally took her son Samuel and physically handed him over to Eli at Shiloh and committed him there to the Lord for “all” his days. Are you getting the idea that “all” is an important part of commitment?

At times I have played the part of the chicken when it comes to commitment and settled for merely making a contribution that was easily replaced and temporarily eased my conscience. At other times I have acted like a three-legged pig that has given a special part of me that may have cost me something but not so much that I couldn’t live without it. Don’t confuse contribution with commitment. Jesus said, “…any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”(Luke 14:33 NIV) Jesus was able to say this because He made a commitment! A commitment to you and me!

May we make that same commitment to Him!
Larry