Listening Requires Action

Deuteronomy 6:4-8
4)  Listen, Israel:  The LORD our God, the LORD is One.  
5)  Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.  
6)  These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. 
7)  Repeat them to your children.  Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  
8)  Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead.  
9)  Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.  

Listen/Hear - Shema (Hebrew) - a verb (which means action:) - [Strong's Dictionary] obey, understand, diligently, declare, perceive, tell.  To hear intelligently (often with implication of attention, obedience), carefully.  [Merriam-Webster] to hear something with thoughtful attention, give consideration.

So at the very beginning of these verses we are told to pay attention, to give consideration, to obey - in other words to take action not just passively listen and let it go in one ear and out the other with no effect upon our lives.  This is critical.  In our day and time we often "listen" with our eyes on our phones, on the television, on a book.  And yet when we do this we are only barely making an effort to tune in to life around us we aren't really listening.

I don't know about you, but I prefer eye contact and attentiveness in a conversation rather than just a passing awareness.  We are all guilty of this.  In this passage, however, in reference to the most important thing in life - sharing Jesus with our children (and honestly, all who we come in contact with) we are told to listen and that listening causes moment by moment, daily, monthly, yearly and life-long action.  And yet like the rest of life we can become complacent and just let life pass by without any real purpose or plan - constantly checking our phones or doing our to do lists.  For what purpose?

This passage requires me to remind myself over and over again that the LORD my God is the One True God and that I must guard myself against idols in this life.  The idol of placing my family, my hobbies, my job, my church, my friends, or anything else before the LORD in my life.

My purpose and your purpose in life is to first determine that the LORD, Jesus Christ Himself, is in fact our LORD and that He is "in My heart" - that He is in charge of our lives, that it is to Him we look for every single thing - hope, peace, provision, grace, mercy, forgiveness, joy, direction, etc. and that we look to Him first and last and every moment in between.  We must ask ourselves...Am I loving "MY" LORD with ALL my heart, ALL my soul, and ALL my strength?

The only way we have any chance of doing so is by the power of the Holy Spirit within us.  Thank You LORD for providing us the Holy Spirit!  When we fall short in this (many times daily) we can confess it and repent and ask Jesus to be our strength!  He provides for our every need!!!

Once I am certain of my own personal relationship with Jesus Christ, I must determine that I will listen to His command to love Him wholeheartedly, then I must repeat this over and over to my children and to those I influence in my life.  Every area of life is covered here: Love the Lord Your God with ALL your heart, soul and strength!

Then, check this out:  Repeat them, talk about them...when?... you sit in your house, you walk along the road, when you lie down, and when you get up!!!  ALL THE TIME!!!  EVERY.  SINGLE. MOMENT.  OF.  EVERY.  SINGLE.  DAY.

God is in us.  He is with us.  We must simply look to Him, determine to recognize Him.  Truly, He has done the hard part of it for us.  After all Jesus Christ died to pay my debt of sin and He rose again so that I can have relationship with Him - NOW and FOR ETERNITY!!!  He did this for you as well.  Do you know HIM?  Message me and we can talk about it.  But I also know this, I make walking with Him hard - He doesn't.

So let's consider this... Am I listening to God or to my flesh?  Am I loving God the way He commands me too?  Am I committed to recognizing Him in every moment of my life?  Am I willing to share Him with others?  And if I am not, why?  Do I have any idols in my life?  Am I aware of Him as I go about this life?  Am I loving others out of the love I have for Him and that love He has provided for me? Do I see Him?  Do others see Him in me?

Father God, please forgive me for getting so caught up in the "busyness" of this life that I tend to just go on about my day without acknowledging Your Presence.  Forgive me for being unwilling to share You in the every day moments of life or for even just being unaware.  Thank You for Your constant, faithful presence.  Thank You that You are always at work in me and through me never leaving me on my own.  Thank You for convicting me and for loving me so much that You will discipline me.  May I love You more and more each day and may those around me see You in me and desire to love you too!  Have Your way in me.  It is all because of You Jesus!!!  Thank You!!