Wholeness

There are times when I do not choose well.

I watch things on TV that tarnish my heart. I behave in ways that erode my relationships. I say things I do not mean, leave things undone that need to be finished. I react in anger and it misrepresents Jesus.

I have holes: internal voids that limit and define me…and it shows.

If that were the end of my story, I would be in deep trouble. I would break things that couldn’t be fixed. I would destroy things that couldn’t be restored. I would damage relationships, beyond repair. I would live, unfulfilled and prideful, without my soul feeling settled. Left alone, sometimes my holes have produced such things.

But there is another element to my story, and it brings me great hope. Jesus…with his supernatural ability to fill even my broadest of gaps…draws me into Him, asking me to choose the thing that will make my soul well. It is an important choice to make, for every believer. It is one that results in wholeness.

The decision to choose what will make our soul well is not always easy. Sometimes it will require us to break from something we love that has become a toxic habit. Often it will ask us to give up our will for the will of the Father.

I love the verse in Ecclesiastes 10:2 -3 that talks about this choice, “A wise person chooses the right road…” This verse shows us that even when things happen to us without our permission or by the choice of another, I still have a choice in what we will do next.

I share the story with people about my freshmen year of college. Things happened that turned my life ... upside down. In the wake of my turmoil, I did not choose well…acting in ways that ultimately hurt me and others.

But at a certain point I decided I wanted to be different (eventually I might add). I wanted to be better and allow God to change my course by committing to truth, even if it hurt. It was a choice I have never regretted, a choice that set me on the “right road” — a road that led to healing and wholeness. I still suffer the consequences of not having my family as a part of my life because of my choices, but the wholeness I found in Christ from choosing the right thing is indescribable.

Wholeness—soul wellness—does not come to those who are only halfway committed to it. It is for the person who is tired of living for themselves or as a victim to their experiences…the one who desires to find their true identity…the one with worldly success who still longs for more. Wholeness is available to the person who wants to no longer be defined or limited by anything and is willing to do whatever it takes to change.

Any sacrifice we must choose to make our soul well is always worth the price. Abundance of joy, richness of God’s favor, stability of truth and completeness of fulfillment are ours when we decide we are no longer willing to live with holes but instead, desire to be whole.

When we offer our holes to Jesus, we give Him the opportunity to fill them up with Him.

And that, is always choosing well.

Father God, I want to choose well. Help me not to stand in my own way of wholeness and healing. Where habits need to be broken, I ask that You give me the strength to break from them. Help me not to invest in things that erode my heart; instead, help me press into You and draw from Your deep well of wisdom, peace and love.