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As believers, we must get to the place where out of our love for God, we not only know what we need to do to grow in God, but we actually want to do those things. In John 14:15 (NKJV) we read: If you love Me, keep My commandments. Our love for God precedes – it goes before – our obedience to God. Simply, you cannot say you love God and yet not obey God.
When we love God, it should not feel like a chore or a burden to do what God says to do. 1 John 5:3 (NKJV) tells us: For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. When we love God, we should not only do what we are commanded to do, but it should be a joy to be obedient to God.
But, have you ever struggled to do what God said to do?
In seasons when I struggled, it was often a result of two related reasons. First, instead of living a Christ-centered life I was focusing on self – doing what I believed was important. And, second, I was functioning as if God’s help was not available to me. Both of these challenged efforts for me to live God’s way. For example, in seasons when work or other demands were heavy, I left little quality time or energy to spend time in God’s Word or to pray. Sadly, every time I found myself in that situation, the result was always that I felt far away from God.
We must know that God loves us and is willing and ready to help us to live lives in alignment with Him. Where, if God says we should do something, we willingly agree and do it. The cry of our heart should be to be with God and to do what God wants. This however can only happen in a meaningful and lasting way if we yield to God’s help.
When we accept God’s help, we can live lives where God’s Will is the only Will we want for our lives. When we accept God’s help, we can learn to depend on God fully. Where nothing is too small or too big to bring before God. When we accept God’s help, we can be empowered to pursue God with everything within us, because our relationship with God is our greatest treasure.
Psalm 40:8 (NKJV) states: I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart.
Except where indicated, scripture references are from the American Standard Version (ASV), Darby Translation (DARBY), or King James Version (KJV) – all public domains.
