A brand-new year is here, and I’m excited to see what the Lord has for us! Keeping Christ at the center of our thoughts takes a great deal of discipline and determination, but so does everything else we really care about. It comes down to how serious we are about knowing God and how willing we are to give him total control of our life.
Whatever we become involved with, he simply wants us to listen and obey his instructions, which is the reason we are here. If we abide under the shadow of his wings, we will walk in the peace and joy of his Spirit, but if we choose to live our own way, we will remain empty and miserable.
Matthew 22 gives us the meaning of life: “Jesus said unto him, thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.”
Actually, the Bible contains many passages where God declares how much he loves us and wants to save us, but most of the time we’re so busy making our own decisions that we hardly ever consider the distractions that are preventing us from serving him.
In Revelation 2, he’s disappointed with how the Ephesians had left their “first love,” and today is a perfect time for us to examine our heart and think about this important decision. The incarnation, crucifixion and the resurrection are all about God’s passion to have a personal relationship with us.