The Dilemma of Promises

Tis the season to question the integrity of wanna-be leaders. The presidential race in full force here in America offers us a profound insight into the human psyche and what it is willing to say to reach its goals. Our history is rife with promises made in hopes of garnering votes only to see those promises broken in the face of reality.

A Republican presidential candidate said in his campaign, “Read my lips. No new taxes!” That may have helped get him elected, but it was a promise he had to break after he took office. The most recent comment a president probably wishes he could take back is the infamous, “If you like your current health insurance plan, you can keep it.”

Mary Poppins speaks of a promise in the movie by the same name as a “pie crust promise, easily made and easily broken.” In our politics, perhaps in life in general, we have come to see most of our promises as being merely “pie crusts”. This is not so much a mark of our world’s reality as it seems to be a mark of human character. Integrity has become a victim of social expediency.

Promises should mean something. They should inspire trust. They should reveal integrity. A promise should shape a hoped-for future that will become reality if the one making the promise is willing to pay the price to carry through. Too many promises become “pie crust” promises.

The price we pay for such frivolous use of words can be high. The loss of trust, the loss of hope, the loss of personal integrity, all should be considerations in our minds before we make these promises. Can we afford the price?

Unfortunately in politics and other areas of life, that price no longer seems so high. Our disappointment in broken promises rarely translates into action that affects the one making the promise. Maybe the attitude is “I have the power, and you do not. Get over your disappointment.” Another perspective might be “I’m not running for reelection. You can’t touch me. Too bad for you.”

Life goes on and we adjust our expectations according to the experiences we have had with people making promises. We lose faith in a person’s promise, so we make them sign a piece of paper. Because we have learned their personal promise is meaningless and paper signatures can be just as meaningless, we have lawyers, lots of lawyers. Then we make tons of jokes about lawyers who cannot be trusted.

Where does this end? It ends where it begins, with each of us as individuals. Can I be trusted? Do I inspire hope in the people to whom I make a promise? Do I have integrity which is revealed in the way I am willing keep my promises?

Can I change the world? No, but I can create a climate of trust around myself. Can I live a life that tells others a person’s promise can be trusted? Yes, that is in my power.

I can be a person of integrity whose word can be trusted. I can be a person of integrity whose promises will be kept as far as humanly possible. I can be a person who will not make promises that exist only to win the approval of others.

As Jesus said,

Mat 5:33-37 "You have also heard that people were told in the past, 'Do not break your promise, but do what you have vowed to the Lord to do.' But now I tell you: do not use any vow when you make a promise. Do not swear by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by earth, for it is the resting place for his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Do not even swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. Just say 'Yes' or 'No'---anything else you say comes from the Evil One.

Promises create a dilemma only when we cannot be trusted to pay the price to back our word.

Did You Celebrate or Grieve?

New Year’s Day is about over. Now what should my feelings be about what I have just left behind? What should be my emotions as I look ahead to the next 364 days? Do I grieve or celebrate over the past? Do I look ahead with eager anticipation or do I fear each coming day?

I find it easy to get in a dark funk thinking about the things that went wrong last year and might again. Then the sun comes up, I get out of bed, get busy with the affairs of the day, and all those fears seem to disappear. This is not exactly how God wants his children to face the beginning of the day.

The opposite attitude has a common name, a Pollyanna perspective. You just know everything will turn out fine. Everyone will be happy. The best will always be the result and everybody will love the world. I meet someone like that and I just get mad.

Was last year all that bad? It had its moments I wish could have been avoided. Were there any moments of joy and satisfaction? Because there weren’t as many as I might have wished, doesn’t mean there were none.

If last year was a typical year in the life of yours truly, I have no reason to believe the next will not be the same. Events will be different. People involved will be different. The world around us will be different. However, the joyful times will be present. The times of sorrow will have their place. So do I celebrate or do I grieve?

An old bit of wisdom goes something like this: If you can affect what you face for the positive, then do it. If you cannot affect what you are facing, then don’t worry about. Act or refocus, but don’t allow yourself to wallow in a sense of helplessness. Jesus told his followers in Matthew 6:34 to stay focused on the current moment. Tomorrow will provide plenty of opportunity to handle its unique set of challenges.

Today has its priorities. We must discover them and focus upon them. Jesus confronted one of his close friends in just this matter when he told Martha her sister was focused on the real priority of life and she should perhaps follow suit. (Luke 10:38-42)

The Apostle Peter in his first letter (I Peter 5:7) encourages his readers to leave their worries in the hands of God, much as Jesus did back in Matthew 6. We are to cast our cares upon the heart of God. We are NOT to come back a few hours later and ask for them back!

Perhaps the word I quote to myself most is the message the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Philippi. (Philippians 4:6-7) There is always something we can do with our worries, our griefs, and our sorrows. Following Peter’s words we can take everything to God in prayer. Now does that mean we get our prayers answered according to our human wisdom. We have no guarantee God will see our solutions as the best ones. He simply asks us to bring our burdens, fears, and worries to him and leave them there.

As we surrender our will to him, God will be able to provide us with what is necessary to face whatever is coming down to the road. We will receive the peace that comes from knowing someone smarter and stronger than we are is in control. Prayer and petitions combined with a willingness to offer them up with thanksgiving opens our spirits to the work of God’s Spirit. Then miracles can take place.

Maybe the sorrows will come. Perhaps the reasons for joy may appear rare. The miracle may be most obvious in our attitude about trusting God to handle the situations we face each day without our effort to tell him what to do.

This year will have both joys and sorrows, victories and defeats. I can celebrate. I will learn from the sorrows and I will share the joys. God will be with me through both offering the gift of peace.