Wholehearted Living

This topic of wholehearted living has been a topic and burning conversation on my heart for some time now.  In recent months, I’ve begun a journey of understanding what this means and asking questions as to what this looks like in my own life. Questions like; what does living wholehearted even mean? Is this really possible? In this blog, I share my heart of what it looks like in my own life to live wholeheartedly with God. I share my personal journey and even things God has shared with me on this topic. We’ll journey into what it means to live wholehearted and why it’s so important to God Himself that we live in the entirety of all that He has for us and wants to share with us. So the real question is; can we really live wholeheartedly? 

So what does wholehearted even mean? Merriam-Webster defines wholehearted as “completely and sincerely devoted, determined, or enthusiastic.” Wholeheartedness has to start somewhere. It’s not something we just conjure up; it’s the small steps we take to live a life devoted to God. It’s the small decisions we make daily. It’s the decision that in our everyday lives, no matter what we’re doing and even in the small, little things, we choose to give all to Him. We all have accepted Jesus into our lives, but what we don’t realize is that our life with God doesn’t stop when we receive Him. It actually begins when we do. The moment we said yes, we said yes to this eternal love relationship with Him. Wholehearted living is a lifestyle of small decisions and small steps that we make our entire lives. So what’s the point? Why is this so important? Why does it even matter? So many people, you and I included, have at some point wondered; what is really the point of this all? Is there more? Is there something I’m missing here? Is this really it? I’m saved and I just keep living my life as is? I’m here to tell you; there is more and it's a beautiful “more”. The whole point is this; God wants to share His relationship He has with His Son with us. He wants us to experience His love in a greater way. The reason why He has done all that He has done from the beginning was for love. Love is what has driven all of this. Love is what drives us to live wholehearted with Him. To be wholehearted is to give Him our whole heart.  He is so passionate about sharing the love He has for Jesus with us as well! At the end of all days, the way we choose to live our lives with Him now will only prepare us for a deeper relationship with Him in eternity. 

My journey so far, as I feel it has been, has been a messy one. I mean, let’s be real here. God really takes our messes and turns it into our message. This whole topic of wholeheartedness comes from a place where I didn’t live wholeheartedly in my life. Let’s let that sink in for a second haha. This is not some overnight thing I suddenly learned. It’s been a process. It’s been hard. It’s been a lot of small steps and even some big ones. Some days it doesn’t feel like it’s even possible. But it’s been worth it. The decision to live my life like this is worth it. Have I always counted the cost and seen that it would be worth it? Absolutely not. Why is that? Because I didn’t fully understand who God was. I moved 2 years ago from Florida to South Carolina and what I came to realize really quickly is that I knew Jesus but I never knew His Father. You say, "Jae, what do you mean by this?" What I mean is; we have always known Jesus and what He has done for us. What Jesus did on this Earth, His death, was all to reveal His Father, God (See Matthew 11:27). Yet a lot of us grow up not knowing the Father and His love towards us. My life up to this point has been a journey of realizing God’s love towards me as a Father and that has changed me completely. I realized wholehearted living isn’t possible unless I have a right understanding of who God is in my life. It wasn’t possible to live my life the way wholehearted is described as, “completely and sincerely devoted.” I wasn’t living completely and it definitely wasn’t always sincere. It wasn’t possible because I didn’t understand the fullness of His love towards me. I couldn’t live fully in that way because I didn’t know that He loves and He likes me even on my worst days. A right understanding of God’s love is what drives us to live with our whole hearts. We actually want to live in this way. It drives us to give all so we can receive more of Him. He becomes the satisfaction of our longings. He is worthy of our lives and all we have to give.

The root of this all is love. Love is why we choose to live wholeheartedly. When we actually have gained the understanding of, not only of what Jesus did for us and who he is, but also God as a Father to us. When we understand even just a little, because we will always be learning something new about this Man Jesus and His Father, that the whole point of our entire lives is to know Him, then we cannot remain the same. Our response is “I give it ALL because You are worthy. YOU are far better than anything I’ve seen or experienced in this world.” Nothing else satisfies and we are willing to give all just to know Him more. To live this way is to live a life shared with Him. For many years, I lived through what others have said about Him but when I encountered the Father heart of God and believed He wanted to share this love with me with me forever… There is nothing I wouldn't give to live more wholehearted with Him. I cannot make you understand the things I’ve come to know about Him. These aren’t things that can be translated for each person; it’s something we must experience for ourselves entirely. I’ve been ruined by such revelation of who He is and I cannot go back to the old way of living. When we have truly tasted and seen even more for ourselves, there’s no way we can remain the same. If we remain unchanged, then I must question have we really encountered Him? Why is it that we get set on fire only for a while to in turn find ourselves cold and distant from Him again? We answer the altar calls in hopes of renewing this passion but one key factor is missing here. We can be set on fire for a moment and we can answer all the altar calls but if we don’t spend time beholding Him daily, then we will surely burn out. We will remain unchanged. The key to it all is beholding Him and living our lives in the Word. Every day. Not just on Sundays or midweek bible studies. Beholding Him in the secret place every day. The secret place is your time with Him. In the mornings, in the evenings. It’s the space where you intentionally come to meet Him. He’s looking for laid down lovers who will abandon all this world has to offer in response to this call to deeper relationship with Him. 

Sometimes I feel there are more questions than answers. This topic is so broad and can be talked about over and over and yet, we would still find something new to say. I don’t have it all figured out. This blog is just what I have learned so far and just like you; I’m on this journey of learning what this looks like. Like I said; this isn’t something I’ve learned overnight. It’s a process. The way to wholehearted living may seem daunting and there may be a lot of questions as to what this looks like even further. I will definitely be talking more about this in future blogs. I would love to hear any questions you may have about this! This blog is more like an introduction into wholehearted living because there is so much more than can be said, but I would truly keep you here all day if I did. So I want to leave you with this question; what is one way in your life, right now, as you live out today, that you can live more wholeheartedly than you did yesterday? Remember, small steps. Small decisions. And if you can’t think of anything then invite the Holy Spirit to highlight something to you. He’s a great friend and He’s faithful to help us. Remember friend; small steps lead us to living more with our whole hearts. Let Him lead you.