Daily Devotions

Our devotions this Easter season come from members of Faith Lutheran Church. Today’s writer is Kate Faulkner.

“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 you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” Deuteronomy 6:4-9

What does it mean to love God with all your heart, soul, and might? When I think about the experience of falling in love, of building relationships with other people, it is a process of discovery. There are things I love about people upon first meeting them, but other parts of my love for them that grows steadily over time as I learn more about them. My love for God has grown in a similar way.

When I first understood God as a child, I knew there was something of interest that I could love. That spark of interest in a lovable God kept me in attendance at church, but it didn’t go much further than that.

As I’ve grown in my relationship with God, I’ve learned more about how God demonstrates love to me in my life. I’ve seen the beautifully intricate design for my life’s story that could only have come from a God that knows and loves me. As I’ve reached out to learn more about the church, the reason we worship together, the importance of prayer in our lives, and have had opportunities to speak about my faith with others, the love I feel for God intensifies.

How do we then bind these words to love God on our hands and fix them on our foreheads? How do we make our love for God so apparent it seeps into every aspect of our lives? I think we do it in the same manner we love others. We spend quality time with the people we love, we talk to them, we lean on them when we need help, we share our hopes and fears with them, and we would do anything for them. To love God with all our might looks the same.

Let us pray: God, help us continue to deepen our relationship with you. Help us find quality time to spend with you and talk to you in prayer. Help us remember to look to you in times of need and in times of admiration and joy. Help us to do your work in the lives of others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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