One Year Bible Reading Plan and Devotional
Today’s Bible Reading: February 3
Download the full one-year Bible reading plan here:
One Year Bible Reading Plan
Clicking on the Scripture links above will open a new window where you can read the scripture from the Holman Christian Standard Bible at Biblegateway.com or choose the Bible version you prefer to read. Check back each day to get the Scripture to read in the One Year Bible Reading Plan.
Love God: The Greatest Commandment
Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places
Jesus said that the greatest commandment is to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind. But people often look in every place they can to try to find love, except in the one place it is guaranteed: in God. In fact, Johnny Lee sings about looking for love in all the wrong places. And that’s what we do – we look for it in all the wrong places. We search for love in other people, in family, in children, in parents, in pets, in hobbies, careers, money, fast cars, sports, clothes, and even shoes. In today’s world, you can even find a fake love in a virtual reality world.
If you’re looking for love, there’s really no limits to where you can look. And whenever there are no limits – we tend to go overboard. And when you look for love in the wrong places, you will always be left feeling as if you haven’t found it.
The Right Place to Look for Love
There is one place that is the right place to look for love – and that’s in loving God. God created us with a longing for His love and when we look for it anywhere other than in Him, we’re looking in the wrong place. Yes, we are to love our spouses, children, family, and our neighbors. But that deep-down longing to love and be loved can only be filled by God.
Love God with all our heart, soul and mind
Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-38 that the greatest commandment is that we are love God with all our heart, soul, and mind. Notice that Jesus used the heart first. The heart is representative of our emotions, especially love. So loving God naturally begins with the heart. But genuine love doesn’t just stay in heart. Where there is love, it will manifest through one’s actions and words. It is expressed in the choices we make, the thoughts we think and how we live our life. Let’s say your spouse said, “I love you” but his/her actions and lifestyle showed something quite different. Would you believe he/she loved you? What if you claim to love God, but never go to church, cuss, drink alcohol, sleep around, and steal from your neighbor. Would God believe you you? What does your lifestyle, actions, and words reveal about how you love God?
Love God with All
Another thing to notice is that Jesus said we are love with all our heart, all our soul, and all our mind. Did you see that He used the word all each time? I can say I love God, my husband, pizza, and Hershey’s Symphony bars. But I don’t love pizza like I love my husband. And I don’t love my husband like I love God. God wants our all. We can’t love God today and not tomorrow. We can’t love Him, but also live like the world. But, we should love God above all else and in total completeness.
Why should we love God?
Why should we love God? First because He made us to love Him. Only humans were created in the image of God. Of all of God’s creation, we were the only ones given a soul. We were the ones created to fellowship with God. But sin broke the fellowship and created separation. That is why we are always looking for love in the wrong places. The purpose of our existence is to love, worship, and glorify God. So when we are not loving God with all our heart, soul, and mind, there’s an emptiness longing to be filled and we look for it everywhere except where the answer is.
We love God because He first loved us
We should also love Him because He first loved us. Even though we were sinners separated from God, He sent His Son to pay the penalty for our sin so that through Christ’s shed blood the broken relationship caused by our sin could be restored. Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13).
We love God because He adopts us into His family
We should also love Him because He adopts us into His family, making us joint heirs with Jesus. When we place our faith in Christ and confess our sins and make Him our Lord and Savior, we become sons and daughters of God.
Examine your love for God
Each of us should examine our love for God. Is it with all our heart, soul, and mind? What do you love more than God? Whatever that is, it’s an idol so put it back in its proper place and give God his. If you say you love God, does you lifestyle, actions, and words prove it? If you’ve been looking for love in all the wrong places, try looking for love in the right place – in loving God with all your heart, mind, and soul.
#ReadYourBible #Exodus #Matthew #loveGod #greatestcommandment
Now you can enhance your Bible Reading with the Verse Mapping Template
Our Verse Mapping download is FREE and includes 6 pages: 3 pages of instructions for using the template and the 2 page template, plus the cover page. If you’re looking to go deeper into God’s Word, learn more about God and develop a stronger spiritual life, Verse Mapping will help you dig into the scriptures. As you apply God’s Word to your life, you will develop a more intimate knowledge and relationship with God.
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God, Love, and Marshmallow Wars
by Julia M. Bruce
What’s Inside God, Love, and Marshmallow Wars?
This book includes 365 daily activities and takes you on a guided journey through Biblical principles about Godly marriage that you can then apply to your marriage, as well as helping you talk through concepts that can help you develop a solid relationship. Inside you will find simple, quick activities that include:
- Scripture to memorize and meditate on
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