Putting All Of Your Eggs In One Basket

You’re likely familiar with the phrase, “Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.” The phrase warns us of investing all of our resources into a single thing because we might lose everything. It’s better, we’re taught, to not go all in, to have some backup plans, just in case.

While this concept may have value when talking about the stock market, we're actually taught the exact opposite when it comes to following Jesus and living for God.

Matthew 6:24 says, “No man can serve two masters.”

“Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the Lord…But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.” Jeremiah 17:5 & 7

Mark 8:34-37 says, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life?”

Matthew 22:37, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”

All means whole, entire, total, and everything without exception.

When it comes to following Jesus, He calls us to put ALL of our eggs in one basket—His basket. We are called, commanded actually, to surrender ALL to Him. To surrender our plans, ambitions, hopes, dreams, desires, fears, anxieties, our insecurities—any and every aspect of our lives and being is surrendered to the Lordship of Christ. We do not have any backup plans or side gigs because ALL of our hope and trust is in Jesus.

I was confronted recently by this calling to be “All in” and my commitment to it. We had something come up that in many ways is an answer to our prayers. However, there are some details that we don’t feel complete peace and clarity on. The other morning as I was praying, I really felt like I had two choices. 1) I could “take it,” I could push forward on this thing that I really want and have “security” for myself. 2) I could surrender it back to God and allow him to work out the situation.

In the end, I surrendered, but it was really hard! It was hard because I really want this thing to happen. It was a process of wrestling with my desires and hopes. I had to recognize that the temptation to push forward was being driven by fear that God wouldn’t come through for me. I had to come to a place of trusting Him whatever the outcome may be. I had to put all of my eggs in His basket.

Putting all of your eggs in one basket can feel scary. We like to be in control. When we have our eggs in multiple baskets we can feel like we have better control of the outcome. That even if one fails, we’ll still be ok, and still have some security. It can feel scary to surrender this situation to God, because what if it fails and I’m left with nothing?

This is where it’s obvious that my thinking is still too much like the world. The truth is what the world considers failure is often triumph in the Kingdom.

We will be celebrating this very reality this coming weekend for Easter. When Jesus died on the cross, it certainly looked and felt by his followers that they had been defeated. How disappointed they must have been. To have put so much hope in this man whom they believed to be their awaited Messiah. Many had given everything and had put all of their eggs in His basket. Now they were left with nothing.

We know the story and that Jesus was resurrected on the third day. He didn’t fail, He overcame! This is what I thought of in my prayer time of surrendering. The reason we are able to put all of our eggs in His basket is that we believe in and have the hope of resurrection. We don’t have to be afraid of failing, of our hopes and dreams dying, and of surrendering our desires. We can imitate Christ and his radical obedience and surrender to the Father. It is because of this confident expectation of resurrection (whether in this lifetime’s circumstances or in eternity) that we can joyfully put all of our eggs in God’s basket.

“In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4