God’s gift . . .

A Heart, Soul, & Mind for God

A lot of people say they love Jesus—love God . . . It would be great if everyone truly felt this way . . . but do they really believe what they’re saying? . . . Do their actions speak the same story? . . . What does it mean to love God, to love Christ? . . . What should it mean to us, our lives, our behaviors, and our response to others? 

After being asked what the greatest commandment was, Jesus responded . . . 

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul, and with all your mind”
Matthew 22:37

Jesus’s answer was in perfect alignment with Deuteronomy 6:4-5 . . . the section of Scripture the Jews have historically given special prominence, called the Shema (meaning hear or listen) . . .

“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.
Love the LORD your God with all your heart and
with all your soul and with all your strength”

The key phrase that Jesus was referencing was an instruction from the Old Testament, saying this was “the first and great commandment”—meaning it is the foundation, bedrock, underlying principle of how we are to worship God—with all our heart—with all our soul—with all our strength. 

So, what does it mean to love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength? 

This is a commandment intended to help us deepen our relationship with God . . . though when you add the word ALL to each of these, it can be a bit intimidating and overwhelming . . . Love God with all your heart and all your soul and all your strength and all your mind . . . we’re meant to love God with our whole, entire being, with everything we are and will become, yet God was very intentional about naming these specific areas—heart, soul, mind, and strength . . . remember, they are the foundation of who we are . . . How can we even do that? 

The heart is the center of our intentions, plans, goals, and emotions . . . The soul is the center for how we live that out . . . Strength includes passion, energy, and might . . . And the mind is our center for intellect and reasoning . . . Each of these should be focused upon God, because our direction reveals what we truly cherish and value . . . If we are pursuing God above all else, our desires, attitudes, and actions will reflect that. 

What does it look like to love God with all parts of us,
                     everything that we are, and with everything that we do?

Loving God with your heart is being captivated by the person, personality, and character of God . . . We want to spend time with Him, so that we can understand who He is, and what He does for those that He loves . . . We are to give God the same kind of love and devotion that He has shown us. 

Loving God with your soul intertwines our passions, our motivations, and our actions, as we are guided and strengthened by the things that move Him, and pursue the things that He pursues . . . We become a part of bringing the kingdom of God to earth. 

Loving God with your mind is the quest of seeking knowledge of God through reading, study, and meditating on Scripture . . . it is also seeking deep and intimate knowledge of the character and actions of God and allowing that knowledge to shape our character. 

A caveat—remember that knowing about God is only a sliver of knowing God personally . . . you can study God,
the Bible, and church history all your life and be nowhere . . . unless you take the leap of faith to have a living, breathing relationship with Him. 

Loving God with your strength means that what we do—everything we do, everything we think about, focus on, and share with others—lines up with and supports the morals, ethics, and standards that God expects of us as a part of His kingdom.

Giving your heart and soul to God means centering your life, desires, and actions on Him, so that this wholehearted devotion transforms your daily routine into a continual expression of faith and love for our Father. 

INSIGHT . . .

Having a heart for God is characterized by deep devotion, consistent obedience, and a sincere desire to please Him . . . Cultivating this type of spiritual connection involves prioritizing your relationship with God every day and in every decision . . . Striving for authenticity and pure motives, even when nobody is looking. . . . Building a daily habit of communicating with God . . . Listening to God by removing or limiting things that pull your focus away to create space to hear God's voice . . . Aligning your actions and words with His will  . . . And remembering to thank Him for all He is, does, and will do in your life as an act of worship.

Growing a heart for God is a lifelong journey of aligning your will, desires, and actions with His . . . It involves being intentional about spending time in prayer, studying Scripture, serving others, and surrounding ourselves with a community of faith to nurture spiritual growth . . . As followers and disciples of Christ, we all have the same purpose in life—to let Jesus live His life in each of us and through us . . . The difference is how it’s played out in each of our lives.

What’s God calling you to do or change so He can live His life in you and through you?                     
                         What’s God’s purpose for you TODAY?  . . . This week?

There is one thing that we can do that will open the door for God to come in, forgive and cleanse us, no matter where we are with our faith or what kind of choices we’ve made in life . . . Grab our keys and head to church—right? No? . . . Call a friend and ask for prayer—right? No? . . . Pull up a Bible app and start a new reading plan—right? No!

NOPE—all of these are great, but none get to the heart of the problem and reveal the one obstacle that’s stops us from hearing what God has for us today—honestly desiring to have a relationship with Him and growing your heart and soul for Him. 

We have to get honest with ourselves and God . . . Admit to HIm that we mess up, we blow it, no excuses or blame, we make mistakes, put ourselves before others—the list goes on and on . . . Then ask for forgiveness! . . . When we are being real with God, and have stripped away all the hiding and darkness . . . then a door opens and God’s grace is waiting . . . The challenge is that most of us have spent years protecting our pride and we habitually defend and excuse our choices instead of coming humbly to an all-knowing God . . . He already knows who we are, what we are, and what we have done—now is the time to stop hiding and let Him help you and love you like only God can.

“Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Psalm 139:23-24

It is time to give your heart totally to God, to let Him nurture, tend, and take care of your heart and soul so that you can grow and mature in His love.

Do you know that those who make a difference in this world for God do not need to be the biggest givers or the most eloquent individuals? . . . As we read Scripture, God seems to go to great lengths to do His work through the “are-nots” of the world . . . God uses the foolish—including us regular people, with our baggage, our hurts, our pasts, and our sins—to confound, confuse, and defeat those who think they know better than God, and to show others that He is in control—you just have to get to know Him . . . Every great movement for God starts with a little handful of people who, ridiculously, and mostly at the ridicule of others, actually believe God will do exactly what He says . . . people who have a heart for God.

INVITATION—TO TALK WITH GOD . . .

Man judges one on the basis of one's appearance, but God critiques the heart.

God has placed our physical heart deep within our bodies to provide protection from outside forces . . . but this isn’t true of our spiritual heart . . . It’s right there, out in the open, and can be susceptible to all kinds of harmful viruses, infections, and influences that might threaten honesty and integrity . . . Earthly influences like success, selfishness, inactivity and laziness, sin, and stress attack our peace, joy, and even sanity . . . Our spiritual “heart and soul” must be constantly protected from these destructive forces, hold them in check, and limit the influences they have on our lives.

Are any of these influences keeping you from living for God?
                           Are they negatively manipulating your character?

To develop a heart for God we constantly work to develop qualities that are worth having in our lives . . . With God’s help, we work to lessen and eliminate the affects the world can have on us and strengthen and grow those characteristics of the Christ-like life He desires to see in us.

So, success . . . How do you handle success? . . . We can be successful and still have a heart for God . . . But success can crowd God out of our heart if we let pride, power, and ego take over . . . This is where humility comes in . . . Humility is simply recognizing the grace and mercy of God . . . When it comes to success and accomplishment, humility recognizes that these things come from God.

The greatest test of our character is not adversity but prosperity.

When things are going well do you pray as often?
       When you are enjoying promotions and bonuses
                 do you recognize God as the ultimate source of those blessings?

What about inactivity and laziness? . . . Did you know that our heart is like an old tractor that is rusted and rotted from sitting in the weather too long, or like a well that dries up from lack of use? . . . Our heart can dry up inside us if the living water of God does not  continually flow in . . . What makes the heart dry is not the absence of God's Spirit, but disuse . . . Unless we regularly and often go to the well of living water, unless we spend time with other believers, give of ourselves in service, and use our heart for God, we will become dry and hollow and just as useless as that tractor.

Have you made yourself available to God? . . . to others?
           Do you want to be used by God?

Now, sin . . . We do not have to be perfect to have a heart for God . . . You can be a sinner and still be devoted to God and still be used by God . . . We all sin—that’s a fact . . . That sin separates us from God, and stains and hardens our heart . . . But the great cure is repentance . . . not just feeling sorry for our sin, but turning away from sin . . . There is no need to ask if there is sin in your life . . . The question is . . .

Are you turning away from your sin?
              Are you repenting of known sin?

"Make a clean heart in me, O God.
Give me a new spirit that will not be moved."
Psalm 51:10

Then, stress . . . Stress is not a sin, but it is definitely a major distractor . . . Stress breaks even the sturdiest of hearts . . . King David had a remedy—Trust in a living God . . . These words were the controlling factor in his life . . . King David's basic philosophy for dealing with the problems and frustrations of life was, "I pray. I trust. I keep moving." . . . Battles and struggles in life will come . . . it’s inevitable . . . But don’t let stress be the controlling factor—use it, refocus the energy to bring your heart closer to God.

What about you? How do you stand the test of life's battles?
            Do you get stressed out or trust in God?

It doesn't matter how great the pressure is.
What really matters is where the pressure lies–
whether it comes between you and God or whether it presses you nearer his heart.
(Hudson Taylor)

Is the pressure of life drawing you toward God or pushing you away?
Which area of loving God is easiest for you?
         Which area is the most difficult?
                      How can you love God more deeply in one area this week?

‍ILLUMINATION . . .

Pause for a moment and consider these beautiful, ruffled, bright yellow blossoms that look like Spanish roses . . . flowers soft and delicate that usually only last a day . . . Then look more closely, each flower is surrounded by spines and spikes of prickly pain . . . A beautiful example of God’s creation . . . and a reminder that sometimes prickliness is part of the beauty.

Think about people you know . . . think about yourself . . . Do you know someone who has a prickly exterior, but when you get to know them better, a softer, more beautiful heart blossoms?

Think of this when you run up against prickliness—be willing to get to know the person a bit better—and see if there is something beautiful and delicate hidden deep within.

Today I encourage deep, slow-the-mind-down prayers to relax you mind and find beauty within your heart and soul . . . Deep breath in (count to 4), hold (4 counts), slow breath out (count to 8) . . . repeat as needed until you find what you are seeking in your heart and soul—the love of God, companionship of Christ, and whispers of the Holy Spirit.

(The "Yellow Rose of Texas" cactus is a popular nickname for the Prickly Pear cactus, specifically the Texas Prickly Pear)

‍ ‍

INSPIRATION—PRAYING THROUGH MUSIC . . .

‍God grant me the serenity to start each day on a joyful note,
‍Courage to sing the song of my soul,
And the wisdom to trust You always to accompany me.

I encourage you to take time to listen to any or all the songs below . . . there is no right or wrong style of music—it is what speaks to you . . . listen to the melody and the lyrics and feel the response of your heart to what God wants you to hear . . . and I do understand that music doesn’t speak to everyone . . . and that is okay too.

♪♬♪ Current . . .  Soul on Fire

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KihE0j5qe8&list=RD3KihE0j5qe8&start_radio=1

♪♬♪ Praise & Worship . . . Lord, I Give You My Heart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlxtO8xajzs&list=RDLlxtO8xajzs&start_radio=1

♪♬♪ Traditional . . . Since Jesus Came into My Heart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSXA2l3hKOg&list=RDJSXA2l3hKOg&start_radio=1

‍ ‍

INTO EACH DAY AHEAD . . .

We tend to think we have to come up with the energy to accomplish everything in life on our own . . . but we can’t do it without God’s help . . . Thankfully, He has given us Christ as a companion on our life’s journey, and the Holy Spirit as our helper and guide . . . We also tend to think that once we’ve become a believer, everything should be perfect, with most serious struggles gone . . . But if you’ve been a follower of Christ for any length of time, you know that’s not true . . . that time will come when we me our Father in heaven, not here on earth.

As our hearts and souls grow with God’s presence and influence, our minds become more open and able to focus on and be filled with the truth of God’s Word . . .  As we fill our minds with God’s truth, the lies we’ve believed will begin to unravel, our convictions will be strengthened, and we’ll gain confidence . . . When fighting against the lies of the earthly world, we need to remember that knowing (our mind) and believing (our heart) God’s truth go hand in hand . . . That’s called faith.

In most cases, our love and affection for God grows more intense as time goes by . . . it is through the witness of God’s faithfulness during times of struggle and trial that a deep love for God grows and grows . . . Over time, we witness His compassion, mercy, grace, and love for us, His holiness, and His righteousness, as well as His hatred for sin . . . through His power we can do the impossible, and we can ask God to help us love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.

"Lord, we come to You today with a heart that wants to be entirely Yours.
Forgive us for the times we get distracted by the noise and chaos of this world
and we allow our passion to grow still.
Create in me a clean heart in each of us, renewing that right spirit within.
Draw us closer, help us to delight in Your Word, and align our desires with Your will.
And soften each heart to love You above all else. —Amen!

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Prayer Paths (written by Dr. Debbie Parcel)
is a weekly email letter designed to “fuel”
your active prayer life, help you stay engaged in
focused prayer, and encourage a
growing relationship with our Triune God. 

To receive Prayer Paths by email each week—send a request,
with your name and email,
to BarnabasRoad2025@gmail.com 

(Prayer Paths is offered through Barnabas Road Ministries)