All In
I just got back from a conference I attend annually, and I always look forward to it. There are usually good workshops, giveaways and prizes to be won, and of course - keynote speakers. This year, one of the keynote speakers was Gian Paul Gonzalez.
Gian Paul is a middle school history teacher in New Jersey who was invited to speak at a chapel the NY Giants were having the day before they played against the NY Jets in 2012. His goal was to motivate them, so his whole speech revolved around two words: All In. Gian Paul brought poker chips to illustrate his message, gave one to each person there, and told them to write their initials or jersey number on one side and on the other something they were dedicated to. He told them that in a poker game, when you think you have something that can’t be beaten, you push all of your chips to the middle and say, “I’m all in.” Gian Paul’s message was “all in” is not just a saying - it’s a lifestyle.
In my women’s Bible study, we’re currently doing a series on the women who witnessed Jesus and His ministry. The series began with the wedding feast at Cana and Jesus’ first miracle of turning water into wine (John 2). Mary, Jesus’ mother, goes to Jesus and tells him the hosts have run out of wine. Having faith Jesus would handle the problem, Mary says to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you,” (John 2:5).
I was supposed to write this blog last week before I went to the conference. I was actually planning to write a blog about what Mary said. That command, “Do whatever he tells you,” has been on my heart ever since Bible study. I see now that God stilled my pen. He wanted me to hear Gian Paul’s message first.
After Mary gave that command to the servants, they did just that. Jesus told them to fill the jugs up with water (huge, people-size jugs by the way), and they did! It must have been so strange to them, but they were ALL IN. They filled the jugs with water, no questions asked, and the result was Jesus’ first miracle of turning water into wine. The first domino of Jesus’s ministry leading Him to the cross was knocked over by a group of servants who were ALL IN.
I am still reeling from that message and the connection God had for me. You see, for us as believers, it has to be BOTH.
Do whatever he tells you.
This isn’t always hard for Christians. What does He tell us to do? Well, a good place to start is the 10 Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17). Most of them are pretty easy because our laws reflect them. For example, we don’t murder because we could go to prison. Those without a legal counterpart may be a little more difficult like not taking the Lord’s name in vain (In the Name of God). What else? Micah 6:8 says, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-39, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.” All of these things we can do. It’s not always easy, but even our enemies, who we are commanded by Jesus to pray for (Matthew 5:44), can be shown the love of Christ by us.
But, the problem is, we don’t do these things at 100% capacity, nor 100% of the time like Jesus did, and when we commit to being His disciples, ambassadors, lights in this dark world, we have to reflect Jesus (What is Your Life Reflecting?).
All in.
Gian Paul’s illustration, remember, was that poker players push all their chips to the middle and go all in when they have something they KNOW can’t be beaten.
Well, we have something - or someone, rather - that can’t be beaten. We have Christ.
It’s time for us to go ALL IN.
Our poker chips are our talents, time, minds, bodies, hands, and everything that can be used for the glory of God.
Romans 14:8 says, “If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” We cannot continue to say we serve God but then only do so some of the time, or when it’s convenient for us. We cannot continue to say we serve God but only do so when it’s easy, or on Sundays, or when someone is watching.
No.
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other,” (Luke 16:13). When we say we serve God, but our actions show we serve the world (anything that is not of God is of the world - there are no gray areas), we are serving two masters.
Joshua 24:15 says, “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
No more stalling. It’s time to place your bet. Are you going to just play one chip here or there, committing yourself to serving the world, or are you going to commit to God who is the sure thing?
Are you ALL IN? I am.
AMEN
