{On my Heart} Mondays. [Part 1: Be All There]

{Via}

‘Wherever you are, be all there.’ - Jim Elliott

I think Jim Elliott said this extremely well. There is nothing more frustrating than meeting with people only to have them spend most of the time on their phone, texting or seeming important in the world. Perhaps it is the lost art of etiquette which grieves me so much, as a people in our generation we are so comfortable with casual. Perhaps we are so casual that we seem almost rude in our behaviour towards others. We lack the art of making others feel honoured by the way we interact with them. Even to the point where we don’t seem to be able to focus on someone when in a conversation.

‘Very few of us understand how to behave socially in a way that truly brings glory to Jesus Christ and showcases the stunning beauty of our King.’ – Leslie Ludy, Set Apart Girl Magazine (Sept/Oct 2010 issue)

I realised how hard this is today at church when we had a potluck. I was so desperately trying to focus on the person talking to me, but with the noise level around me and constant distraction of others bumping into you in a small space it becomes increasingly difficult to truly give undivided attention to the other person. That bothers me because it is not the kind of interaction I feel would bring glory to Christ.

The other aspect of Jim Elliott’s quote which came to mind upon reading it is of contentment. I have two friends in particular in my life who are such a source of encouragement to me. They have mastered the art of being content with where God has them. They would have every reason according to the world’s standards to be unhappy and even complain about certain things in life. They fight the battle to not ‘be all there’ where God has them, to be discontent until God brings along that right guy in their life. Yet both of them are victorious in bringing honour to Christ in their attitudes, they trust & wait, knowing His love for them exceeds that of an earthly love.

An attitude of discontentment with where God has us is something that truly bothers me. Even in myself. He is teaching me so much about what it means to find joy in the situation He has put me in. Where He has called me to live currently. What people He has living close to me right now. To find joy in every circumstance, like Betsy Ten Boom even in a concentration camp. He has not called me in my life so far to find joy in a place as dire as a concentration camp, therefore I feel silly for not being content if Betsy can find contentment in that circumstance.

So wherever I am in life, whatever place I am in. I am learning to be all there. To not have an attitude of discontentment but to truly seek to honour Christ & trust Him with where He deems fit for me to be.

Even in something as small as a conversation with someone.

If you aren’t all there, you may miss a precious moment like that pictured.

{Via}

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{On My Heart} Mondays is a new series.
I hope to share things I am learning or things close to my heart in these posts.
May they encourage you on the inside as we meet through our shared love of making things beautiful on the outside =)