The Journey of Commitment

Matthew 22:37-38 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. People say in life that the first of anything is the important one. This commandment that Jesus told us 2000 years ago is still important and still the greatest. We should look at this verse/commandment as well as the rest of the commandments as commitments to our Lord. If we are committed to something, we are fully into whatever is prioritized. Let me break it down even more with these verses. First thing we “must” do is love. Love is so powerful. We can’t be committed to something without love. Love comes from God first. God is love. What is truly love? Love is when Jesus died on the cross for me and you. An even better example is John 3:16, “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” After we love, next we “must” love God with all our heart. Everything in our life starts in our hearts. If we have a problem inside of us, it’s mostly a change of the heart condition. We must have a “heart-check” to make sure our priorities are in the right order. For if we cannot love God with all our heart, we won’t receive all the blessings that He has for us. Remember, we must remember that God wants our WHOLE heart, not just part of it. He is a jealous God that doesn't want to share it with other "idols". Third, we “must” love God with all your soul. Just like the heart, our soul can dictate our feelings inside of us. We must be committed to be the soul of light to this dark world. We were born to stand out. We were made perfectly in God’s image, so our souls will shine so bright. Yes, souls can be crushed by events in our lives. We have to remember that storms don’t last, God does. God has the final say in our life. He is a God of multiple chances. When God gives us chances, His love overflows in our souls. Lastly, we “must” love God with all of our mind. Mental exhaustion is real. I am experiencing that with my profession. I remember last year, I was fully committed to be at work all the time. I didn’t want to take time off because I loved what I did every day. This past Spring, I could tell I was getting exhausted by being mentally drained from working as well as getting my masters. I talked to my mentor and he told me to take a personal day, take a break and rest your mind. I am so thankful that God blessed me on my personal day. I restored my mind through His word. I felt so renewed and revived to finish the year on a strong note. If you ever need to have “me” time, I would highly recommend you to do. Shut out the world. Let God come in your “me” time.

The greatest commandment is the greatest commitment to our God. We are so blessed that God gives us wisdom and advice to live a life that reflects Christ. We are humans, we will fall short sometimes on this commandment. When we do, may we run to God first. Ask for forgiveness. Ask for guidance to love Him with all of your heart, soul, and mind. Once you pray to God and are committed to His love, He will give you more blessings than you can count.