“With All of Your Heart”

Without question we tend to spend too much of our time on those things that prove to be unimportant. It just kind of happens! But how much of our efforts are focused on the priorities of our lives—especially, the one that is preeminent?
 
Jesus unequivocally taught that His followers must establish and then keep as their first priority an abiding love for Him. That love finds definition in what He stated: “‘If you love Me, keep My commandments’” (John 14:15).
 
More specifically, Jesus gave this over-arching answer to what is most important—what is the greatest commandment for us to keep:
 
“‘“And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.” This is the first commandment’” (Mark 12:30).
 
Solomon wrote of this, and he warned of the alternative that people so often and so easily embrace:
 
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).
 
Do we know better than God? As preposterous as this question is, it seems that we answer “yes” when we don’t obey God. Issues such as: prayer; Bible study; fasting; Sabbath attendance and fellowship; in loving one another and resolving hurt feelings; in faithfully tithing; in taking sound guidance through sermons, writings and personal counsel; and, in being faithful to the truth of God—all of these and more are matters in which we must not compromise!
 
When we do wake up and realize that our life’s course no longer mirrors God’s, then it is time to seek God:
 
“‘Now, therefore,’ says the LORD, ‘Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning’” (Joel 2:12; also, verses 13-14).
 
Is God really and truly first in your life, and do you believe that “with all of your heart”?