The Best Thing You Can Do…

          The best thing for a sick body is a doctor’s visit.  The best thing for a hurting friend is comfort.  The best thing for a broken car is a good mechanic.  The best thing for an empty stomach is some wonderful home cooking.  But what about the best thing for our lives?  What is the top… the premiere…  the number one thing we can do with ourselves?  Is there such a thing?  Well, someone once asked Jesus the Christ the very same question, and His answer is found in Mark 12:29-30, “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ”Hear O Israel, the Lord our God the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”  But what does it mean to “love” God?  We live in a society where many, many people “admire” God, feeling like He’s a good resource to have in case of trouble, and may mention Him from time to time when it suits their own purpose, but that’s not love.  Real love carries with it a profound sense of selflessness.  It is a deep, overwhelming willingness to change, to struggle, and to serve the object of our love.  Is that the kind of love you have for God?  Jesus says it will show itself in your heart (how you feel about Him), your soul (the very core, the center of who you are – no secrets), your mind (a reasonable, understandable love that can be communicated and comprehended), and your strength (everything… yes, EVERYTHING you choose to do).  If you feel a sense of inadequacy in your love for God as we discuss these things, the good news is this:  YOU CAN DECIDE TODAY TO HAVE COMPLETE, REAL LOVE FOR HIM!  Spend some time thinking about and perhaps writing down ways that you can demonstrate real love for God with your heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Don’t stop at simply “respecting” the Creator of all things… love Him!  Don’t be satisfied to do what mediocre or mildly positive, choose today to do what is BEST!