Recently, it seems the topic of being all-in has come up in my life a lot recently. The question as to whether we live life inside of the boat or live life like Peter who stepped out on faith. The idea that comfort zones are really not places of comfort, but places of perceived safety. In all reality, they really only hold us captive to what we know and who we are. Not who we were meant to be or the life we were meant to live.
What type of person are you?
The question is… Are you the type of person who is going to keep doing what you’re doing, saying you believe, but not necessarily taking the next step? The next leap of faith. Jesus didn’t come to give you an adequate life. He died on the cross to give you an amazing and abundant life. An all-in life.
When you think of your marriage, family, or friends, on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the least amount, how “in” are you? How invested are you? How much are you giving daily to see your marriage, family, or friendships grow? In the age of technology, how present are you in life?
Do you have conversations where you all-in or are you waiting for the next notification to go off on your phone? I doubt most of us can honestly say that we are all-in, all the time. When you say you will do something or be somewhere, do you follow through? Is it a priority for you? Do the people around you depend on you and believe that you will do what you said you would do? If you are feeling the slightest nudge that something is off with your focus, attention, or presence, you are probably correct. Pay attention when that happens because it just may be a signal that you are not all-in and you either need to be, or you need to step out until you can be all-in. And no, there is nothing wrong with realizing you have over-committed yourself or that life took a different turn and you now have to readjust. Life happens to all of us, but being all-in also means you live in such a way that your integrity and character remain intact.
What I have learned in my marriage, for instance, is that even when I thought I was giving 100%, I really wasn’t. God made it clear to me that to give 100% meant that I held no grudges, forgive when it wasn’t comfortable, love when I felt I had nothing left to give and the hardest part, be willing to accept my role and responsibility in where we had ended up. Once I took that into consideration, how “in” was I? My number that I was so proud of, my 100,% dropped down to maybe 50 or 60%. Why is that? Because we are all imperfect human beings. Then I started thinking about how God loves. His love is the epitome of “all in”.
He loves us even when we turn our backs on him. An “all-in” love.
He is always ready to listen and truly be present. God doesn’t do the type of listening where He blocks out what He doesn’t want to hear. He has an “all-in” hearing. He also doesn’t keep track of our mistakes and throw them in our faces. He forgives with “all-in” compassion that is incomparable. He shows us grace in abundance, even when we don’t deserve it. “All-in” amazing grace.
Where do you fit in?
What about you? Are you “all-in” or are you standing on the sidelines of life hoping that things will change, while not being willing to step out of the boat? Do you want to be in the same place 6 months from now? 1 year from now? 5 years from now? 10 years from now?
It is time.
Time to jump “all-in”. To realize that everything you have and everything you are is from God. To realize that without Him, you are nothing. To jump in and not just get your feet wet, but to immerse yourself in God’s love. When you decide to do that, you are simply saying that you need Jesus. You can’t do this thing called life alone.
There’s one thing about being “all-in”. You can’t do it halfway. You are either in or you’re not. If you are ready and willing to see God open up the gates of heaven and pour blessings into your marriage, family, friendships, and life, then jump all-in! He’ll be right there to catch you.
So what’s it going to be? Are you going to watch life pass you by as you stay safe and dry in the boat? Or are you going to take a chance, trust in God and step out?
The decision is yours. The life God has for you is waiting on the other side of your fear.
Ephesians 3:14-19
For this reason, I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
