I Love You, Lord
Today's Verse:
I love the LORD, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications. ~Psalm 116:1
Today is recognized as Valentine’s Day. It is a special day in which husbands and wives express their love for each other. Most celebrate Valentine’s Day by going out for a special meal, date, and spending time with each other. Children celebrate this day by giving notes to their friends at school, their teachers, and their parents. For my wife, it is an extra special day since it is also her birthday! Our devotion this morning centers on a special love. It is a love expression that the psalmist openly made about his love for the Lord. He said, “I love the Lord!”
There is the priority in loving God.
Loving God is the highest priority of the Christian life. The greatest commandment instructs us to love the Lord with all our heart, all our soul, and with all our might. Every bit of who we are is to be consumed with loving God. Loving God is thinking about God all day long. Loving God is doing those things which please God. Loving God is obeying His commandments. Loving God means there are no other gods before Him. He alone has center stage in our life. There are no competitors and no other lovers between us and God. Do you love the Lord?
There is the predicament for loving God.
As we read Psalm 116, we realize that the psalmist had undergone a serious trial where he was near death. “The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow.” When you know you are about to die, everything in life takes on a new perspective. His near-death trial drove him to prayer. He prayed for deliverance from the sorrow of death. The Lord delivered him from his predicament. He had a new lease on life. He realized that he was not living close to God before this trial. Now he has drawn close to God and wants to maintain this closeness. Does the Lord need to send a pressing trial into our life in order to move us to a closer relationship with Him?
There is the performance in loving God.
We love the Lord by coming to Him repeatedly and often in prayer. "I love the Lord because he hath heard my voice and my supplications." When we pray, we are spending quality and quantity time with God. We love the Lord by exercising faith in Him. Without faith, it is impossible to please Him. The psalmist said, “I believed.” Believe that God is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think. We love the Lord by giving Him thanks and worshiping Him. The psalmist came to the place where he felt like he was coming up short in everything he did to show his love for God. “What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me? ” Love the Lord in your deeds and actions.
There is the passion in loving God.
Love God openly. Don’t be shy about loving God. The psalmist told everyone, “I love the LORD.” Love God sacrificially. Sacrificial love gives of our best and of our all. Sacrificial love gives over and over. The psalmist speaks twice of paying his vows to the Lord before all His people. At a marriage ceremony, a man and woman openly exchange vows and pledge their love to each other before the eyes and ears of witnesses who have assembled with them. Love God even to your last breath. Let it be known that the passion in your life is your love for God.
Tell your special loved one, “I love you” today. But also be sure that you tell the One Who made you, saved you, and loves you that you love Him as well. “I love the Lord!”
Have an agape God Morning!
Bible Reading Schedule: Numbers 7