Jesus said that we are to love God with all that we are – with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength.
What does that mean exactly?
Love Him with your Emotional Life (heart). We will not let emotions rule us. For example, we will not let anger turn into revenge or cruelty; instead we will allow our emotions (such as compassion) to lead us to do His good will.
Love Him with your Intellectual Life (mind). We will not fill our minds with garbage, as God wants us to think on the things that are pleasing to Him. But so often we fill our minds with trash almost every day – music, movies, tv, internet – I’ve heard it said this way: You can’t “pick up a piece of poop from the clean end” – and yet it seems we keep trying to do that with some of the stuff we are putting into our minds. (Just be glad today’s picture wasn’t tied to this paragraph!)
Love Him With your Spiritual Life (soul). We will not hold onto any idols. Many want to say, “God I’ll give you everything except for _______.” (Simply fill in the blank with: my money, my relationship with this person or people, my desire for popularity, my dreams, my occupation.) Give God anything and everything that tries to compete with your attention toward Him.
Love Him with your Physical Life (strength). We will not let our physical desires rule us either – not in lust, not in what we put into our bodies. Instead we will use our physical bodies in a way that promotes purity and self-control and brings glory to God.
Make the commitment to love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength today.