Good morning, team!

Now, I don’t know about where you are, but I’ve been hearing a lot from a LOT of people here in Cranbrook that they are very much “Ovid the Covid.”

“HUH?” You say. “Just what does that mean??” LOL! Fair question. 🙂

This is a little phrase shared by someone at my work that just means they are officially feeling “Over the COVID CRISIS,” and I found it catchy and clingy in my brain. And maybe yours now too? 😉

And as much as I have embraced and enjoyed quoting this little saying (and driving my kids crazy with it—not kidding :)—there is another disease I have become familiar with, with just as “catchy” a name, though it may be a little bit harder to get “ovid.” I call it the “decommit disease.”

Now there she goes again, talking about unheard-of things. 🙂 And so, just what is this  “decommit disease,” you want to know?

Well, follow me through to the finish, please. Do you ever find it so easy to sign up, make a pledge, create a contract with your head (or with God) in the morning (especially on MONDAYS) about something you’re going to DO … or NOT going to do … EVER again? (Anyone resonate with this now?)

It’s like when you are in that place where you’ve learnt what you’re doing is “No GOOD,” or you now know what you ‘‘want to do” to create change and make life better (according to the Bible). And so, you start off the day eager, excited and, oh, yay, hip hip hooray!! This is going to be easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy, right?? I have just read God’s WORD and, oh my, I am FULLY in, full up and going to stick with what it says all the way. It is already a 100% DONE deal!! Nice!!

Until around noon, when things start to creak, crack, or a “crisis’’ comes along and, whoa,  pretty soon your full-IN is now a full-ON broken-down DUD-deal. And, oops, you decided to “DEcommit” to what you have started off that day declaring you will DO (or not do). Do I have anyone signed up for this making some sense now?

So, why does this sometimes happen? And how does this make you feel? 

Well, I don’t know about you, but when I catch myself doing a “decommit” to these GREAT GODLY GOALS, whoa, it can be pretty hard, heavy, crushing, crumbling, crashing—leaving me leaning to feeling, and maybe believing, I am like a full-on “failure.” Hmmm, sound familiar?

But as I faithfully open up my Bible and take a peek, what do I SEE?? Heck, yeah, there’s a LOT of people who did the “DEcommit Disease!” Yes, these good, GODLY people fully intended to follow up and follow through on what they said they would DO, but in the end cracked and crumbled and proved that they were (and it is so “horrible” to say) wholly HUMAN after all. Surprise, surprise. 🙂

I kinda chuckle at this one, because today I read in Luke 22 about one of Jesus’ disciples, Peter. And I don’t know about you, but I feel I can relate to him on these levels: he was a get-’er-done disciple, a fully-on-your-side friend, a don’t-tell-me-I’ll-give-up-or-I-will-just-give-more-mister-‘cause-I-will-BE-there-NO-matter-what kinda guy.

Yup, I’ve got to appreciate good old Peter. Here was the guy who was right there on Jesus’ side, sword in hand, committed and confidently ready to protect and defend HIM 100% all day, all the way past soldiers, armies and guards.

Until addressed by a young girl at the end of a tiring day: “Are you part of Jesus’ team?”

“Nope, not me!” (Luke 24:54-62)

And not just ONCE did he DO this, but three times over he denied. Talk about a total DECOMMIT. I guess this guy is ready to be tossed out in the trash, totally no good and no use,  just like us when we don’t keep our Christlike commitments, right??

Wrong, nope, NADA!! God is all about taking people who mess up and miss the mark and  REMAKING them into “solid stones for Christ”! Isn’t that what Peter became (Matthew 16:18)?

SO, how do I take MY decommit and MAGICALLY move it forward from a nagging-neglect into a positive-progression?

Well, I think the answer is simpler than we think, and I thank GOD and His gift of keeping things SIMPLE, for simple girls like me. 🙂

FIRST: We do not allow ourselves to fall into false-based thinking like “I’m no good” or “I can’t do any better.” Thoughts that can be considered “irrational,” and they are opposite of what Jesus says we can achieve. (Check out Matthew 19:26, Mark 10:27, Luke 1:37 and Philippians 4:13).

SECOND: Speaking of Jesus, let’s just stop and look at His own example when he was having temptation to “decommit.” (Whoa, He did, did He??) Yup, again in Luke 22:39-44, there HE was, calling out, crying out, begging to not have to do what He had committed to DO. And what was his first practical, positive and powerful response?

PRAYER (verse 42). Period.

Now, as a girl who loves to be “doing,” prayer has been a struggle for me to feel “practical enough.” But here I read again … and again … and again—Yes, I AM getting the message, Lord LOL!—the POWER of it to get through the tough times.

And the answer that JESUS got? “Angels came to strengthen Him” (verse 43).

Hmmmm, I think I have something to learn here. 😉 And I think it is this: how those times when I want most to DEcommit are when I need MOST to turn fully and authentically to God through PRAYER and be truthful about how I feel. (Nope, it’s not complaining; it’s called CONNECTING.)

And then finally, THIRD: Similar to how you’re sharing with GOD, maybe DO that with some source of trusted GODLY counsel. Why? Because GOD says it is deeply valuable (Proverbs 11:14), and very GROWING to get perspective back that “Hey, it’s okay. A lot of people make mistakes and do the decommit. That doesn’t make it right; it just makes us, well, ‘human.’” And realizing this helps us not stay STUCK in a pile of guilt, but allows us to get up and get going forward from it.

And here is a quick small point on that GUILT BUTTON. There are two guys at the end of Luke to look at: 1) Peter and 2) Judas.

We all know they both made major mistakes. We all know they did the DEcommit. But do we see how they each took very different paths from that? Here are the responses:

OPTION #1 – JUDAS: He just internalized remorse, guilt and grief, which ended with him hurting himself more than anyone else. (Aren’t we sometimes our own worst enemies?)

OPTION #2 – PETER: He took a hold of the decommit and then chose to repent, 

refresh, receive (and BELIEVE) in the removed guilt and then moved faithfully forward.

So, girls, let’s not be too hard on ourselves. It’s important to get that the “decommit disease” can happen, but it’s more important what we decide to DO with it once it has been “done.” And I for one want to learn my choices and tools from the best basis: THE BIBLE.

Ladies, it’s great to see you reading today on here. But it will be more cool to see what HE says in THERE. 

Lots of love and prayer, ‘cause we are all in this together to stay Disease-FREE! So, here is a prayer, an ACHOO and a BLESS YOU!!!

Carol 😉