God wants all of you!
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’” Mark 12:30 NIV
God doesn’t want a part of your life. God is not interested in half-hearted commitment, partial obedience, and the leftovers of your time and money. He desires your full devotion, not little bits of your life.
A Samaritan woman once tried to debate Jesus on the best time, place, and style for worship. Jesus replied that these external issues are irrelevant. Where you worship is not as important as why you worship and how much of yourself you offer to God when you worship.
The kind of worship that pleases God has four characteristics:
- God is pleased when our worship is accurate.
- God is pleased when our worship is authentic.
- God is pleased when our worship is thoughtful.
- And God is pleased when our worship is practical.
When Jesus said, “Love God with all your strength,” he was saying that worship takes effort and energy. It’s not always convenient or comfortable, and sometimes worship is a sheer act of the will—a willing sacrifice. When you praise God even when you don’t feel like it, when you get out of bed to worship when you’re tired, or when you help others when you are worn out, you’re offering a sacrifice of worship to God. And that pleases God.
Point to Ponder: God wants all of me.
Verse to Remember: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” Mark 12:30 (NIV)
Question to Consider: Which is more pleasing to God right now-my public worship or my private worship? What will I do about this?
