How to Be “Involved” In Ways That Really Matter

Have you ever heard this saying by Theodore Roosevelt: “Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care”? Caring takes involvement. Caring takes being present.

We are involved in a lot of things today, but how much time do we take to be involved with people . . . really involved?

How many minutes did you spend on Facebook or email yesterday, compared to having a face-to-face conversation? It’s easy to send out 140-character tweets. It’s harder to really listen and cry with a friend.

Caring for God—loving Him—takes involvement too. It’s easy to listen to Christian music about God, to talk about God, or even to write about God’s goodness without allowing Him to fill us and impact every part of our lives. God is waiting for us to come to Him and be still before Him, yet instead we dance around the outskirts of the relationship, trying to make Him notice us.

Is this you? Sometimes it’s me. If so, we need to remember that we’re not fooling anyone. People know (our kids especially) when we’re really tuned in. Jesus knows what’s needed in our hearts.

“Jesus had a way of helping people see the condition of their hearts,” says Henry Blackaby. “He said, ‘These people draw hear to Me with their mouths, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from me’ (Matt. 15:8) . . . If you want to know if you are responding to God with your head or your heart, look to see what is coming out of your life.”

What is coming out of the relationships in your life: deep connections or surface friendships? What’s coming out of your relationship with God?

Are you ever disappointed with God’s involvement in your life? Does God seem far away during the week when you are trying to make decisions or when you are faced with some kind of difficulty? When we draw close to Him during every day moments, then we’ll have a strong relationship that we can lean on during the hard times.

• Involvement means caring.
• Involvement means being present.
• Involvement means face-to-face conversations.
• Involvement means being real.
• Involvement means opening our heart to God and allowing Him to show us what’s inside.

Your kids, your husband, your friends, and God are all waiting for you to connect with them today. Take five minutes and list out three ways you can do just that.

1. I can be involved with my spouse by . . .
2. I can be involved with my kids by . . .
3. I can be involved with God by . . .

Not only will they be impact, your life and heart will forever be changed, too.