Where Has All the Commitment Gone?
Commitment seems to be a dying value. I don’t know about you, but inevitably, when
I have to take care of the business of living, one roadblock after another
causes me great frustration due to the lack of commitment in someone supposedly doing
their job.
For example:
We own a condo in Orlando and the rental management company recently stopped
their work in Orlando. It took me a
month just to talk to a person (after no one answered emails and voicemails) to
find out how we would make the transfer and to confirm that we would be getting
all the money owed us. (We didn’t see
that for another month.) It took a few
more weeks after that (again, with multiple emails and voicemails) just to get
the name of the renter and another week to get his phone number. There was a day where this information would
have easily been handled in one phone call.
One time recently, (one time in years and hundreds of calls) I called a company about a bill and a human, English speaking voice answered immediately. Surprised at her pleasant tone I said to her, “I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to talk to a real person!” We both laughed.
It seems that every time I attempt to call a company
or try to right a wrong that’s been done, this is my experience which has now become the norm. It takes mounds of
paperwork and emails and phone calls to get one minor task accomplished anymore.
What has happened to our society? There seems to be little pride in the job
anymore, and few people are committed to doing the best at their work that they
possibly can.
This attitude has carried on into marriage. Where has all the commitment gone?
In counseling couples, Rick and I always stress the
importance of staying committed to the marriage. We often get looks like we must be
crazy. People don’t want to work at
anything. As usual, there are a few exceptions, and those
people give me great encouragement for the human race.
I believe this loss of commitment began with the “me”
generation of the 60’s. Women’s lib only
enhanced this disease which has spread like a plague in our world. We only want what we want. The person we’ve chosen to, perhaps, spend
the rest of our lives with, is certainly disposable if they don’t accommodate
what we want.
I wonder how many couples actually discuss
commitment before they marry.
Unfortunately, at least 50% of the first time marrying couples comes
from broken homes. They have had no role
model of commitment in marriage. In
fact, the percentage may be higher because more couples have chosen to live
together due to their fear of commitment.
Couples that live together have an even greater chance of splitting
because they’ve never “officially” committed.
Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.”
When we commit our lives, our jobs, our marriages
over to God, we cannot fail. That same
commitment to a spouse will truly make a marriage successful.
More to come about commitment to marriage!
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