Love's First Commandment

"And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strenth." (Mark 12:30, NLT)

The first time we see this command in the Word is in Deut. 6:5. God is commanding us to love him completely. It has always been His plan for us to enjoy a close relationship with Him. When someone asked Jesus what the greatest command was, He responded with the same words, to love God.

Isn't it a wonderful thought that the God who created the universe wants to be in an intimate relationship with you and I. But a relationship works both ways. Both parties have to do their part. God has and is continually doing His part. The question is are we doing our part. It takes work to keep a relationship up. It is a continual work.

Just as a relationship with your spouse or another friend, we must maintain that relationship. We must evaluate it and make sure there is not something we need to do differently. Keep it up to date, don't let it go lacking. We must do the same with God. Evaluate your relationship with God daily and see if you need to make changes. Is there something you need to do differently. Keep it up to date. What a privilege it is to love God and be in close relationship with Him.

The challenge today is to write "Loving God is my greatest responsibility" and put it somewhere you will see it often and be reminded of His love for us each day and how we must love Him in return and be in relationship with Him.