I used to be an avid Texas Hold ‘Em player. There’s a thrill that comes with the game, especially the moment when you push your chips into the center of the table and confidently declare, “I’m all in!” Then, you wait and attempt to remain confident in the decision you made. It’s not until all cards are laid out on the table that you know if your “All In” moment was worth it or not.
I’ve had other “All In” moments in my life. My biggest being when God said, “Sell your business and write a book.” I felt as if God was saying, “Are you willing to risk it all?” We said “yes” and now we wait, confident that God is worth it all. I believe God is calling us out of our comfort zones to live a life full of God.
At my first book signing this weekend, a friend handed me a beautifully wrapped gift. Inside was a keepsake that read, “Faith is taking the first step, even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” We took that first step when we sold the business. We took another step when I wrote the book. And another, when we published it. Our steps seem to be getting easier as God continues to bless our obedience. That’s how I landed on the front page of the High Point Enterprise. I didn’t do it. It was a total God moment. You can check out that article here if you missed it.
Hebrews 11:1 NIV says, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Thinking back on that day when we said “Yes” to God, we couldn’t see where we were going. But we stepped forward anyway and enacted our faith.
As a child, faith came easy for me. I remember the day I said ‘yes’ to Jesus. I attended Sunday School that morning where we talked about Matthew 18. Jesus called a little child to him. I can see it so clearly in my head. Sweet Jesus embracing this child. Later that day, I would ask Jesus into my heart. As I child, belief in something you cannot see comes much easier. Kids just believe in mystical, magical things. I think they have a much better understanding of God, Jesus and Heaven than most adults. We want to reason everything out, to make sense of it all. God does not make sense. Jesus even warns us that unless we change and become like these little children, we will never enter into the kingdom. We need to be more child-like when it comes to our faith.
I believe God had an “All In” moment when He offered up his only son to save you and me. God risked it all on us. Jesus had an “All In” moment too when he agreed to become Emmanuel, “God with us,” which lead him straight to the cross. I imagine Jesus lovingly looking back at all of us saying “I got this. You are forgiven.” Jesus’s “All In” moment precedes every other “All In” moment we will ever have. Without Jesus, our moments would be for nothing.
I have to ask you, have you ever had an “All In” moment with God? Do you feel God nudging you out of your comfort zone? What would it look like if you went “All In” for God? I pray you have had more moments than you can count. But there is only one that really matters. It’s the one you have with Jesus. He already pushed all his chips into the center for you. Now, it’s time for you to return the favor.
Let us pray:
Precious Jesus, thank you for risking it all for me. Help me to have the courage to move out of my comfort zone and declare that I am “ALL IN” for you! In Jesus Name, Amen. -M
