The Blessing of Being Wholehearted

3 Advantages of Being Wholehearted

Joshua 14:6-15 - Click here to watch the sermon

This sermon discusses a man named Caleb who asks Joshua to give him the land that the Lord had promised him.  In the book of Numbers, Caleb and Joshua were two of twelve spies that were sent out to scout the land of Canaan.  All of the spies had a good report of the land but all except Caleb and Joshua said the land was fortified and filled with terrible warriors that would be impossible to conquer.  Caleb and Joshua wholeheartedly believed God would grant them victory to take the land but the other ten, halfhearted spies caused everyone to lose heart.  Years later, Caleb would inherit the land that God promised due to him following God wholeheartedly.

Before covering the 3 advantages of being wholehearted let's look at the signs of those who are halfhearted.  Those who are halfhearted:

1. More concerned what others think
2. Focused on life on earth over eternity in heaven
3. Rationalize sin over fearing God
4. Weak faith
5. Only look to God when you need something
6. Wonder....Why them and not me?

I will admit that I am guilty of almost all of these signs of halfheartedness.  To fully receive God's blessings we must wholeheartedly seek him.  Here are 3 advantages to being wholehearted:

1. Being wholehearted benefits our family
2. Being wholehearted builds our faith
3. Being wholehearted builds our future

Being Wholehearted Benefits Our Family:

I attended high school in a small town where most teachers and administrators used the school as a stepping stone to advance their careers.  This resulted in individuals giving a halfhearted effort because they knew they were not committed to staying.  This also caused those who were committed to not follow the administration wholeheartedly.  We must make sure to unite together and serve our schools wholeheartedly so that our school "family" can thrive.  When we are all serving our students wholeheartedly everyone from the students, faculty/staff, parents, and community will benefit from our dedication.

Being Wholehearted Builds Our Faith:

Have you ever worked in a school and felt like some of the decisions being made were a bit questionable? Or perhaps you, like myself, made a questionable decision.  When we do not completely "buy in" to our school's mission and vision we can start to let doubt creep in.  This allows us to start questioning decisions that are being made within the school.  When we make the choice to serve our schools wholeheartedly it will build our faith because we will begin to see the benefits from giving all that we have for our students. When we see the results from serving our schools wholeheartedly, we will have battle tested faith that will allow us to conquer any obstacles that come our way.

Being Wholehearted Builds Our Future:

The choices we make everyday will impact those that follow us.  In education there are unlimited amount of eyes that are watching our every move.  Students, parents, families, community members, social media followers, coworkers, and many others will be scrutinizing every choice and action we make.  Serving wholeheartedly in our schools will help us make better decisions for our students.  When we all show up to school to serve students wholeheartedly we are building towards the future on today's successes.

Final Thoughts:

This post was a little longer than normal but this topic really hits home with me.  I would not be where I am at today if it weren't for the couple of teachers that made the decision to serve me wholeheartedly.  There were three teachers that poured everything they had into making sure I was successful.  There will be days when we are tired, aggravated, and times we want to give up.  When you feel like giving in just remember that there are children that show up to school everyday because you are their only hope.  Some of our student's lives depend on our dedication.  How do you serve your schools and students wholeheartedly or how will you start serving wholeheartedly? I would love to hear your thoughts and discuss this post with you.  Please leave a comment or reach out to me on Twitter. Take care and God bless!