Rev Doug Hollida wrote about Loving God with all your strength!

A Note from the Director of Worship and Arts:

 

"Love the Lord with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind."  That is the theme of our current sermon series.  This Sunday, Rev. Carol will look at what it means to "love the Lord with all your strength." 

I think we can all define the word "strength," but what does it mean to "love the Lord with all your strength?"  Does it mean we should lift weights?  I remember 20 years ago a Christian weightlifting team came to our town-they would give a demonstration, and then witness about Jesus.  I guess we could say they were literally loving the Lord with all their strength.  And yet, the weightlifting was just to draw folks in; the Christian work was the witness.  And that takes strength too-physical strength to go out and do it and also emotional and spiritual strength.

Every aspect of our existence is from God and belongs to God-it was created by and given to us by God, and God has a plan for every aspect of our lives.  It takes strength to put away our selfish, worldly ways and open our hearts, souls and minds, and yes, the use of our strength to God's purposes.  But the Lord, speaking through the prophet in Isaiah 55, says that we can come to him and get what we need for free.  Our ways are not the Lord's ways, but the Lord's ways are better and easier.  So there is every reason to turn to the Lord in love and seek the Lord's ways for our heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Seek the Lord while he may be found,
   call upon him while he is near;
 ⁷ let the wicked forsake their way,
   and the unrighteous their thoughts;
let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them,
   and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
 ⁸ For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
   nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.

                                      Isaiah 55:6-8 (NRSV)

We will see you Sunday, as together, we continue on the journey to loving the Lord with everything we have.

Rev. Doug Hollida,
Director of Worship and Arts