Principal's Ponderings

Wholehearted: Showing Up, Standing True

Our theme this year calls us to something beautifully simple and deeply challenging, to be Wholehearted. Not half committed. Not well intentioned but distracted. Not enthusiastic in words yet absent in action. Wholehearted means steadfast and true. It means when we say we will show up, we show up. When we say we are praying, we truly pray. When we promise to serve, we follow through.

In a world where words are often light and commitments flexible, the people of God are called to be different. Scripture reminds us, “Let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:18). Wholehearted living is love in action. It is faith with feet.

Jesus modelled this beautifully. When He arrived somewhere, He was present. At the well in Samaria, in John 4, He did not rush past the woman others avoided. He sat. He listened. He engaged. Across cultural tension and long standing division, He chose connection. He saw her fully and offered living water. He showed up.

When disputes rose between cultural and religious groups, Jesus did not withdraw into comfort. He entered conversations with truth and grace. When doubt filled the hearts of His followers, He spoke encouragement. To Thomas He said, “Stop doubting and believe” (John 20:27), meeting him right where he was. To the centurion who sought healing for his servant, Jesus marvelled, “I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith” (Matthew 8:10). He noticed faith. He responded to those who asked and sought Him.

Hebrews 10:23 urges us, “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.” We can hold steady because He is steady. We can be true because He is true.

Wholehearted service begins with attentiveness. It asks, who needs encouragement? Where is there a quiet need? What has God prompted me to do? It might be a message sent, a meal delivered, a conversation not avoided, a commitment honoured when it would be easier to cancel. Small obediences build a life of faithfulness.

Oswald Chambers wrote, “The remarkable thing about fearing God is that when you fear God, you fear nothing else.” When our hearts are anchored in Him, we are freed to serve courageously. Mother Teresa once said, “Not all of us can do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” That is wholehearted living.

Let us speak with God about this. Ask Him to open your eyes to opportunities to bless. Ask Him for courage to follow through. And when He prompts you, be true to it. Be present. Be real. Be authentic. Show up.

This is what it means to live wholehearted.

Shalom,

Chad Smit