All in. When I think about the term, and ponder whether or not I am fully committed to my relationship with God, sometimes it's easy for me to say, "Yes. Of course I am all in!" After all, I am a pastor. I have committed to pray, study, teach, lead, and share my life with as many folks as possible. And I have been so richly blessed along my life's journey. I have encountered ups, downs, and inbetweens; and people have trusted me to walk with them during their best and worst times. Together we have seen triumphs and tragedies; we have shared meals, coffee, laughs, and tears. All in? Well, yeah...of course I'm all in.
But recently, I got to thinking about some of the "All In" people of the Bible. People like Abraham and Sarah, Noah, Joseph, Daniel, Mary, and the Disciples. These folks really were all in. God asked Abraham if he would leave everything and everybody he knew and was comfortable with, and go. God didn't tell him where he was going. God didn't tell Abraham what his life would look like from that point on. God simply asked Abraham for his trust and participation.
Same with Noah. "Build a big boat friend, because it's going to rain...A LOT," speaks God. Noah's anxious response, "Um, okay. But what's rain?" God speaks again, "Don't worry, you'll find out." And find out he did. Wow! Again, God didn't tell him how things would turn out or what the details of the journey would look like. God just asked if Noah was all in or not.
Mary. Whew! What can I say about Mary that hasn't already been said. She's a teen-aged girl and God comes to her and asks if she would be all in. Mary...thank you! Thank you for participating in the greatest life-altering, history-changing event the world has seen! Even though you weren't given all the details and plans in advance, you said yes. WOW! Talk about being all in!
Then there's me. Again, I like to think I'm all in. But I'm human, like everyone else. I have my hopes, dreams, fears, doubts, and goals. And though I seek God to guide and direct me, at times I also box God into my plans for how I think things should look. In other words, I try to figure God out. And just when I think I have one tiny part of God figured out, God surprises me. "Betcha never thought of that one, did you?" asks God. "Well...I guess not. Thank you for showing me yet another way of seeing things," I humbly retort.
And that's how I think God is. God asks us to experience and participate in a relationship. But, God usually doesn't tell us how things are going to turn out. And that's a good thing. Why spoil our life's experiences by telling us exactly what lies around the bend? Yet, at times because we're human, we get a picture in mind of how we think things will turn out. That's okay. We're human. But we need to be flexible. And we need to also focus on God and not on the journey, not on the details, not on the plans. Yes, God wants us to participate, but we can't lose sight of God because we're too busy on the details - even the details of sharing God's love. Jesus simply said, "Go. Make disciples. Baptize. Love." How we do these things is up to us, but we still have to keep God at the center of our lives.
All in? Yeah, I really am. So I'll remind myself to keep my focus clearly on the one who invites us to, "Come. Follow me."
Until next time...
