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Tag: effort

Half-Hearted

Half-Hearted

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Half-Hearted--autumn maple leaf with heart in centerI don’t like to play golf. When family or friends invite me, I play a half-hearted game. I prefer to hit the trail for a long walk in the country. Nature’s beauty thrills me any time of year, not hours on a golf course.

Half-hearted means my heart is not in an activity.

I don’t care for the activity or its results. Therefore, I give it little attention or effort. Other half-hearted examples include to:

  • Say, “I am sorry,” but not mean it
  • Invite a friend to visit but hope they stay home
  • Study for a test while texting and watching television

Sometimes half-hearted means I lack courage.

I act like a coward, full of fear. Rather than do what needs to be done, I hope someone else does it.

For example, if a frog were to get in my house, I would probably wait in another room while a braver person gets it out. I might yell at the frog to leave – from a distance. Because frogs jump too fast, I would want help. So far, all frogs have stayed outside.

When others need help, I want to give them whole-hearted attention.

May God fill me with the courage to show true love and concern. Like so many who have helped me, I want to serve God and help others from the heart—my whole heart.

“I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever” (Psalm 86:12 NIV).

Thanks to Becky Nash Rowe for the suggestion. Image by Rebekka D with Pixabay.

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Pull Out All the Stops

Pull Out All the Stops

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Pull Out All the Stops-organFew people play an organ. Yet, any of us can pull out all the stops. We can give our best effort in whatever we do.

In the world of music, nothing compares to pipe organs. Their unique sound has filled churches, concert halls, and other buildings for centuries.

Organs can be used for all types of music. They are probably best known for classical and sacred.

An organ’s sound results from air vibrations in its pipes. I don’t understand everything about how that works. However, I do know three facts:

  1. If an organist pulls out a knob called a stop, it allows sound from a set of pipes (a rank).
  2. If the organist pushes a stop in, no sound can come from those pipes.
  3. The more stops pulled, the larger the sound.

You can see an organist pulling out stops in the picture above. (Some newer organs have replaced pull stops with tilting tablets.)

Organist and writer Emily Akin suggested and helped with this phrase. She describes pulling out all the stops as “giving it all you’ve got.”

Let’s not hold anything back. Let’s pull out all the stops!

“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might” (Ecclesiastes 9:10 NIV).

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