Keep These Words
Today’s scripture selection: Deuteronomy 4-6
Key verse: Deuteronomy 5:6
“Keep these words…in your heart.”
It is known as the “greatest” commandment:
“Hear, O Israel, The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.”
It is about total commitment; total love; total faith.
And, no matter where you are and what is happening in your life – these words – this covenant – is to be at the very center of your life. That’s why the very next sentence after the commandment bears this instruction:
“Keep these words…in your heart.”
Think about how many things, on any given day,
- Occupy your attention
- Demand your allegiance
- Keep you busy
- Ask for your input
- And in one way, or another, want something from you
Think about the people who place demands on you as well.
No wonder it is a temptation – it is so easy – to feel like you just can’t give anymore of yourself – to anyone or anything.
But, there it is.
Not just asking for a small bit of you – but the best of you – your first and foremost love and attention…
The covenantal relationship you have with God.
It isn’t easy. But then, real, deep, true, loving relationships never are. And that is exactly the kind of relationship God desires to have with you.
How’s it going?
If you feel like that relationship has been suffering lately – thankfully – it’s never too late to begin again.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for your faithful love. May I always love you with all my heart; all my soul; all my might. AMEN.
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By Paul Simrell
The Reverend Paul W. Simrell has served for over thirty years in a variety of congregational and institutional settings. He is a recognized minister with standing in the Virginia region of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada and is nationally endorsed by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) for specialized ministry in both pastoral counseling and chaplaincy. Ordained in 1982, he has served congregations in Kentucky, Texas, Florida, and Virginia. He currently serves as the pastor of Elpis Christian Church, a small, historic congregation located just a few miles west of Richmond, Virginia. Elpis is the Greek word meaning “expectant hope.” He also serves on the associate clinical staff of the Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care, Richmond, Virginia, both as a pastoral counselor and a ministerial assessment specialist, specializing in executive, clergy and relationship coaching. He is a graduate of the University of Florida and Lexington Theological Seminary and has done advanced clinical training in chaplaincy and pastoral counseling at the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington, Kentucky, Children’s Medical Center and Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas and the Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care in Richmond, Virginia. He is a Certified Pastoral Counselor, an ACPE Practitioner, and a member of the American Association of Christian Counselors. He is a Certified Facilitator of the Prepare-Enrich relationship assessment and skills-building program and served as a volunteer chaplain for over twenty years with the CJW Medical Center campuses in Richmond, Virginia. His avocational interests include playing the piano and drawing. He is very happily married to his wife Elizabeth Yeamans Simrell, a free-lance writer, who is also a Certified Facilitator for the Prepare-Enrich program.
Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton
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IGW3 - In God's Word, In God's Will, In God's Work 