Jen Lawrence – Do It All In Love

February is the month of love!

We celebrate romantic love on Valentine’s Day, friendship love on Galentine’s Day, and family love on Family Day, which is now a holiday in many provinces.

On See Hear Love, we are also celebrating another kind of love: our love for our Creator.

In Luke 10:27, Jesus commands us to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”

This sounds good, right? Of course, we love God. He made the flowers and the beaches and that little girl on YouTube who crashes her dad’s important interview with BBC News. So we greet each other with “God is good!” and drink out of our “I heart Jesus” coffee mugs. We love God like we love the flowers and the beaches and the little girl on YouTube. Love ya, God!

But Jesus didn’t just say to love God; Jesus says to love the Lord, our God with all our heart and with all our soul.

All.

Not some of our heart. Not 95% of our soul. He doesn’t say to send God a like on Facebook, or send Him a couple of heart emojis on Instagram.

That’s not enough. And it’s not not enough because God is some narcissist demanding our praise. It’s not enough because God wants a heart and soul relationship with us.

This is the God who gave us His Son so he could walk in our experience. This is the God who wants a relationship of love and not of obligation. This is a God who forgives us time and time again. This is the God of second and third and seventy times seven-th chances. This is the God who restores our souls.

And He wants us to love Him fully – heart and soul love – holding nothing back. In the ancient world, the heart was understood to be the source of all we do; as Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Everything.

Our love for God should drive every thought, word, and deed. This is not just about praise and worship and prayer – although it’s about those things too – but it’s about our decisions and our day-to-day life. We show our love for God by living in a Godly way. We love the Lord our God with all our heart by living how He intended. We make every attempt to restore the Garden of Eden by caring for the planet and each other. Sometimes, we sit quietly and listen to a friend who needs our kindness. Sometimes we flip tables and help to right injustice. Thank God, we have Jesus to show us the way.

This year, as you tuck little Valentine’s Day cards in envelopes for your child’s class or buy a box of candy for your spouse, remember to think about how you can show God your love for Him. Spend some extra time in prayer. Give thanks for all His gifts. Do your Utmost for His Highest in everything you do.

Do it all in love.