The Two Most Important Commandments - LOVE (part 1)

I want to share an article that I wrote for Moms of Faith.
I will post it in several segments...


Love is mentioned well over 350 times in the Bible. I'm sure God must be trying to tell us something. We will start our study with Matthew 22:37-38; And He replied to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the most important and first commandment.

I am sure that we have all heard this verse many times in our Christian lives. But, do we really get it? How do we love God? Why should we love God? Let's explore How to love God today, and tomorrow we'll get into why.

How Do We Love Him?

It is very simply stated by Jesus in John 14:15, If you really love me, you will keep (obey) my commands. As simple as it sounds....it seems to be a very difficult task....or is it? Well, yes and no. If we study the Word, get it into our hearts and minds; it is easier to submit to the Holy Spirit...

However, when we fill our minds with the world, i.e.,

Soap Operas - which encourage adultery, lust, impurity, fornication, lies, deceit, and many other sinful desires. I struggled with these for years. I didn't just watch one...not even just one channel. I would watch one channel and tape another. I was watching six different daytime dramas and several evening ones. I eventually cut back and convinced myself that was good enough. But, no, God wanted me to lay them all down. My mind had become so absorbed with this unrealistic, ungodly world. I didn't want to let go. Of course I eventually did...not without a fight though. The enemy was on full attack mode when I decided to submit to the Lord (obey His commands). I kid you not my TV would just turn on at the precise moment, my VCR would start taping when I didn't set it to, and the grocery store checkout...It was ugly. I didn't give up...and now I am FREE!

Entertainment Magazines - which are filled with gossip, wrong information, slander, hurtful situations in human lives, and really none of our business anyway. These were another stronghold in my life. My favorite was In Touch...or like my husband used to call it, "in touch with the devil." LOL. Let me tell you, I loved these things. I had to know who was cheating on whom, and what this one said about that one....I'm sure there are some of you who know exactly what I am talking about.

Guess what? God wanted these put down too. My flesh fought hard. Honestly, I still have to catch myself. Those grocery store checkout lines are filled with them...I try hard not to even look at them. I am happy to say that I no longer buy them...or even touch them.

Secular music - which is mostly provocative lyrics, self, and worldly principals.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that every non-Christian song is sinful. I'm saying be careful what goes in. It will come out. The Bible says in Galatians 6:7 that we reap what we sow. If we sow junk into our minds we will reap junk. If your searching through the stations looking for a good song to listen to...make sure it is good for your spirit not your flesh.

These examples are ones many Christian women face. You may be thinking I have gone too far...I don't know what I'm talking about. Yes, I do. I know because the Word tells me so.

In I John 2:15 it says, Do not love or cherish the world or the things that are in the world. if anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life or stability of earthly things - these do not come from the Father, but are from the world itself. And the world passes away and disappears, and with it the forbidden cravings of it; but he who does the will of God and carries out His purposes in his life abides forever.

Next time we will discuss WHY we should love God...


Note: All Scripture was taken from the Amplified Translation.

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 (KJV)

I was getting ready to take my girls for a walk today and I had the hardest time finding my shoes and then my keys. It took us a good ten to fifteen minutes. LOL...

Anyway, we finally got out the door. It looked a bit cloudy, but I figured we would be OK. Well, we didn't even get one minute into our walk and it started to rain. So, we ran back to the house and decided to go to the grocery store instead.

From the back seat my 12 year old daughter said, "See Mom, all things work for the good to those that love the Lord. If you didn't misplace your shoes and keys, we would have gotten soaken wet!"

I was stunned by her child like obersavation and how wise and trusting of the Word that it truely was. And you know what? She's right!

We forget this Scripture in our day to day lives....ALL things...not just the big stuff, but the little stuff too. God is always working things out in our favor. Sometimes it takes a child to point out what should be obvious.

I am encouraging you and myself to look for these moments in our lives. Take the time to "see" all the ways God works things our for us....big AND small!

Have a wonderful morning, afternoon, and evening!

Lara ;)

Be a Doer of the Word

Matthew 7:24-29

So everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts upon them [obeying them] will be like a sensible (prudent, practical, wise) man who built his house upon the rock.

And the rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.

And everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not do them will be like a stupid (foolish) man who built his house upon the sand.

And the rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell--and great and complete was the fall of it.

When Jesus had finished these sayings [the Sermon on the Mount], the crowds were astonished and overwhelmed with bewildered wonder at His teaching,

For He was teaching as One Who had [and was] authority, and not as [did] the scribes.

We must be doers of the Word. If we only listen and then go out and contradict what we have learned with our lifestyle, then we are not living the way we should. We must walk the walk. We must be obedient children.

I would like to give you two assignments for the day...

First, PRAY. On and off, under your breath, out loud, ALL day. Seek God, and ask Him to show you the areas in your life that HE wants you to submit, lay down, improve, and/or work on. Then...DO it!

Second, read and meditate on James 1:21-25

Let's Pray,

Daddy God, thank You for making Your Will clear through your life giving Word. Help me to submit to You and be a DOER of the Word and not just a hearer. Help me to walk the walk before my children and live my life completely and totally consecrated to You and YOUR Will. Please show me ANY areas of my life that are out of Your Will for me and I will GLADLY lay them down. Thank You for loving me and teaching me. In Jesus Mighty Name, Amen.

In His Love and Service,

Lara ;)

Here is my devotional that I posted on the site...

Matthew 7:21-23

Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in heaven.

Many will say to Me on that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name and driven out demons in Your name and done many mighty works in Your name?

And then I will say to them openly (publicly), I never knew you; depart from Me, you who act wickedly disregarding My commands.

We don't like to hear Scriptures like this. I makes us uncomfortable. Unfortunately, ignoring them does NOT make them go away and does NOT help us.

I tried to find a loop hole, Ladies. I looked up every word. It is what it is.
We MUST live our lives the way we are called to. It is unwise and foolish to willfully live in sin and try to 1 John 1:9 it or claim the "grace" card. Don't misunderstand me, God WILL forgive us when we sin. However, when we willingly CHOOSE to reject His Word and adapt it to society we are playing a VERY dangerous game.

Galatians 6:7 says; Do not be deceived and deluded and misled; God will not allow Himself to be sneered at (scorned, disdained, or mocked by mere pretensions or professions, or by His precepts being set aside.) [He inevitably deludes himself who attempts to delude God.] For whatever a man sows, that and that only is what he will reap.

We are NOT called to live fleshly carnal lives.

We are NOT called to be imitators of this world.

We are NOT called to change the Word to fit with "the times."

We are NOT called to be friends of this world.


We ARE called to be a LIGHT in a dark world.

We ARE called to be aliens waiting to go home.

We ARE called to speak the Truth.

We ARE called to stand up for the Truth.

We ARE called to SUBMIT and OBEY God's Word.

We ARE called to live a CONSECRATED life.

Let's STOP making excuses to sin and START shining the light of TRUTH. Let's get into alignment and start listening to Daddy's voice.