Love God With All Your Heart

You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul,
and with all your mind.
Matthew 22:37

Matthew 22:37 records what Jesus called the first and greatest commandment.

God pours out all of His love on us, and then He commands us to love Him with it. Amazing, isn’t it? You would think that every Christian would be doing this already. However, true followers take this command literally. In fact, they have had a complete transplant of their heart. They have a kind of heart beating in them that is different from the one they had when they were born. They feel a passion to pursue God more than they pursue eating, because they’ve been changed by His love. They have a vibrant, living relationship with Him and refuse to get in a rut with it. They can feel the pulse of God inside their heart as they yearn to reach the rest of the world. They have surrendered every part of their heart to God, and they refuse to allow the world back in. God is the center of their heart, and they have rearranged all of their priorities. They see the world through different eyes now. They have different goals.

Think about this: Is there any part of your heart that you have not yet given over to God? The more of your heart you give to God, the more of His life He gives to you. Loving God with all of your heart requires that He has your whole heart, not just part of it. For everything you give to Him, He will give back something so much better! Remember, He’s the originator of love and the biggest giver. You cannot out-give God.
Take some time to journal right now and write down any parts of your heart you have withheld from God. Make a choice to give these parts to God.

Now ask God to fill you with more love for Him so that you can love Him with every part of your heart.

This article was adapted from Ron Luce’s book Connecting With God.