19 Jul It Will Be Different for Me
I’ve come alongside some broken situations lately. My heart aches. I’ve seen it all through the years, and there are some patterns that continue to make no sense to me. A spouse is told that the “feeling” is gone and suddenly feelings have developed for a person that they’ve just met. This rush of “feelings” supersedes any vow of commitment that was ever made. Forget the vows, forget the kids, forget the oneness, forget the commitments. It all comes down to what I “feel.” Love has lost the buzz. It’s gone, and it won’t return. (At least that seems to be the logic.) And the number one priority is “my happiness.”
I’ve seen it in broken spiritual lives too. No work is put into developing the relationship. Other ventures and voices seem fresh and alluring. And suddenly Jesus is not worth following any longer. Pull back from fellowship. Pull back from Bible reading and prayer (the conversational aspect of relationship with Jesus). Pull back from serving anyone in any way. Listen to the voice that says, “Its all about you.”
And we walk away, chasing after our new friend.
The amazing thing to me is that while this scenario has failed to deliver on this ominous promise of happiness for people throughout the ages, everyone who walks through it feels it will be different for them. It is right for them, because it “feels” right.
Feelings are deceptive. They can change directions like the wind. That is why a wise man once said, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its path leads to death” (Proverbs 14:12).
The prophet also observed, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9).
The key for all is to revisit the commitments and vows taken at the beginning. We must begin to do the things that we were doing at the start (Revelation 2:5). Marriages, believing communities, relationships with Jesus, all take work. They take daily investments. Rather than walking away, get back to work!
The one reassuring promise is His: “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Matthew 28:20).
Dalton Jenkins
Posted at 17:17h, 20 JulyHi Pat,
You are so right. If we all can go back to the beginning and understand the devil’s devices, we will do well to protect our relationships. I am doing a series on the devil’s devices and noticed that he has been using the same old tricks. He always tries to separate us in a move to isolate. Then he causes us to doubt the commitments and relationships we have, and then he kills us. I pray that more of us will follow your suggestions. Keep up the good work.