Love The Lord
by Kelli Wong, Director of Hospitality, Finance, and Human Resources
Deuteronomy 6:1-9 Moses said: Now this is the commandments—the statues and the ordinances—that the Lord your God charged me to teach you to observe in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy, so that you and your children and your children’s children, may fear the Lord your God all the days of your life, and keep all his decrees and commandments that I am commanding you, so that your days may be long. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe them diligently, so that it may go well with you, so that you may multiply greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your ancestors has promised you.
Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when your rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts on your house and on your gates."
As I child I heard, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might," so many times. Everyone knows it. But, what does it mean?
To me, it means that I should love God with everything, all that I am. Love God always, when things are great and life seems like a dream come true, and when things are difficult and so many things seem to be going wrong … like when the world is going through a pandemic.
In this passage Moses is speaking to the Israelites as they prepare to enter the promised land. He is reminding them to keep God’s commandments and to teach them to their children and their children’s children.
I am a mom of three young boys: Beckett, Brighton, and Bastian. It is a privilege to be their mom and watch them grow, and this passage means so much more to me now that I am a mom. I want my boys to love God with everything that they have, all of themselves. I want them to love God with all their heart, soul, and might, that as they grow up they will know and believe that this is true. I know that it is not only important for me to teach them, but to also show them by how I live my life. I am continuing to learn what it means to bind this commandment as a sign on my hand, fix them as an emblem on my forehead, and write them on the doorposts of my house and gates.
Life is not perfect, and sometimes things don’t go the way we plan. But God tells us in His word, and has shown me, that He has a plan for me and my life. The Israelites were freed from Egypt, then wandered the desert for 40 years, and then God led them to the promised land. That must have been so difficult for the Israelites, but God was with them the whole time and fulfilled His promises to them.
Prayer: God, thank You for loving me. As I go through my day and this week, and our ongoing Fast, would you show me how I can love You with all my heart, soul, and might? Show me how I can teach my community of friends and family to do the same, to keep these words in our hearts. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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