Devotional : Nothing Matters Without Love

(Our church just completed  a 21 day season of Fasting and Prayer, inclusive of a Devotional booklet. From the booklet, I would like to share  this inspiring Devotional written by the Senior Pastor of People’s Church in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Dishan Wickramaratne. May it bless your heart!)

Mark 12:30-31 “And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

God says these are the two things that matter most in life. Love for God and love for people. He says if you get these two things you’ve got it. The Bible is very clear about it. That God put you here on earth to do two things: to learn to love God and to learn to love other people.

Life is one giant lesson in love – Life is not about acquisition – how much I get; Life is not about accomplishment – how much I do; Life is not about achievement – how much I earn. Life is not about all the other things we’re told life’s about.  Because all of that you’re going to leave behind. You’re not taking your career to heaven. You’re not taking your car to heaven. You’re not taking your money to heaven. You’re not taking your house to heaven. But you are taking your character. You’re taking you and you can take others with you.

1 Corinthians 13:1“If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” It doesn’t matter how many languages you speak or how eloquently you can communicate your message. Or how smooth your talk may be or how inspiring and touching your speech is. If you don’t love others, you are just an empty bunch of noise.  The greatest linguist in the world is ineffective if he speaks without love.

Dr. Karl Meninger: “Love is the medicine for the sickness of the world.”

And if we want to know what love looks like, we can go to the cross and see love made flesh and dying for us.

• Evaluate and see how your love temperature gauge is?
•  Ask God for a baptism of love in every department of your life