I was recently asked to write an article for "The Mooresville Weekly," one of our community newspapers. With their permission, I am reprinting it here on this blog as well.
Imagine for a moment that you
just fell into a crisis. It doesn't matter what type: financial, personal, or
medical. Now picture in your mind the one person you would call first. Maybe
it's a family member. Maybe it's a good
friend. Maybe it's a Pastor. Whoever that person is, your mind no doubt
went to them because they possess a quality or connection to you that makes
them invaluable. More than likely, topping the list of characteristics that
caused you to choose them is their dependability.
Being dependable is a valuable
character trait, and one that the Bible says God values, both in our
relationship to Him and to each other. Sadly, in our churches, community, and
culture today, there is an epidemic of undependability. It's not uncommon for me to hear a
"yes" from someone when I ask them to help me, only to find that
their actions that follow are a very clear and decisive "no"
instead.
Jesus tells a story in Matthew
21:28-31 about two sons. One son says
"no" to a task, but later thinks better of it and does it
anyway. The second son says
"yes" but never does what is asked of him. Jesus asks his audience
which of the two was the most dependable, to which his audience obviously
replied "the first son." Now,
truth be told, neither of the sons in the story were perfect examples of
reliability. The one that got the job
done still led their father to believe that they could not be counted on. However, in the end, whether it was guilt,
conviction, or a sudden onset of ethics, the task the father asked for was
fulfilled. In James 5:12, James also
reminds us about making promises bigger than we can keep, which set us up for
failure (swearing oaths), saying we should simply let our "yes be
yes" and our "no be no".
Consistent statements of what we will do, with actions to match, makes
us a person others can call "dependable."
The flip side of this situation
is that none of us are perfect, not one.
Ecclesiastes 7:20 reminds us of this hard truth. The same grace that God gives us when we fall
should always be offered to others when they let us down. Still, as with any sin, the promise of God’s
forgiveness and the Christian “duty” to forgive is not a free pass for us, or
anyone else, to not strive to be the most dependable, reliable, and faithful
people we can be.
So finally, now imagine you are
on the other end of the conversation where a friend is in crisis or need. You were the one that got the call this
time. Before you make that promise of
help, will your words say what your actions will follow-through on? Let's all work towards, as God intended, for
us to reclaim the lost art of dependability.
