Scripture
Matthew 22:37-40 “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Revelation 2:4-5 I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.
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Observation
As one of the most recognizable verses in the Bible, do we really know what it means? To love God means to choose Him above ourselves and what we feel or want. Is discipleship a delight or a chore to you? While there is certainly work in cultivating discipline, your motivation, why you are doing what you are doing, will make the process of developing discipline a pleasure or a pain.
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Application
We are to choose Him with all our hearts – our passions and affections. Pleasing Him should be the motivation for our lives.
We are to choose Him with all our souls – our minds, wills, and emotions. We are to consider Him in what and how we think, our choices, and our desires.
Anything less is not really love, but performance and obligation. What, then, do we do when our spirits run dry? We return to our First Love, Jesus. We do this in the same way you feed any relationship. You spend time together, share your heart, and serve the Lord. Make the choice to reengage with Him, and the emotions and affections will follow in time. You get out what you put into any relationship. What are you putting into your relationship with Christ?
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Prayer of Repentance
Father, I love you. Thank you for today. I repent of not loving You with all my heart, soul, and mind. Forgive me for seeing following You as a chore instead of a delight. Teach my heart wisdom. Help me to love You more – to choose You above my own comfort, preferences, or opinions. I return to You, to sit at Your feet and to delight in Your presence. Help me to fall more in love with You. Amen.
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Worship