Thursdays in the Truth: The Greatest Commandments (and Dad's words)

I was fortunate enough to be brought up in a Christian household.  My parents were good Christians and are both believers. We weren’t the most committed family - we would go to church here and there, and sometimes Dad would bring out his bible and read it to us. And in spite of our loose definition of being Christians, it was known that our family believed in the bible and God, and we needed to believe in Jesus and His death and resurrection as our ticket to heaven.

Often, I look back on my childhood and there are some little wisdoms, or reoccurring phrases, that replay in my mind.  One of my mother’s phrases that she often repeated to me was: “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” I’m sure this was in response to my horrible habit of procrastination! And I wish that after all these years I could say that I’ve learned to listen to my mother’s advice, but sadly, I have not. In fact, I am writing this post exactly one day before it is due; I have known about it for a month!

I can also hear my dad when I look back at my childhood. Over and over he would tell my sister and me: “Girls, there are two things that matter in life, your relationship with God, and your relationship with other people.”  As snotty teenagers, we would often go to our parents looking for some teenage empathy and he would always give this wisdom to us instead. I’m sure I must have rolled my eyes and obnoxiously mouthed the words as he repeated them.

I accepted Christ at a very young age, but I didn’t even start reading my bible until after I was married. Sure, I attended Sunday school and a youth event every now and then, but I didn’t dedicate my life to following God and the teachings of Jesus until I was baptized in the spring of 2005. I later joined a “small group,” dusted off the bible that had been sitting on my bookshelf, and began reading through the gospels. One day I came across this passage in Matthew 22:

“34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

DING! DING! DING! The light bulb went off in my head – my dad had been right!! These were the very words he had been saying to me all these years. These are RED letters - Jesus’ own words; and these words would also later be repeated in Luke and Mark.

These verses are my life’s words. In everything I do, I try to take Jesus’ wisdom (and Dad’s words) into account. I am FAR from perfect. I make mistakes. A LOT of them! But I try to live by Jesus’s own words: Love God, and love people. That’s it.

How much different would your life be if you reminded yourself of that daily? Jesus said these are the greatest commandments. Number one is to love God. Love Him BIG with all your heart, soul and mind. Let Him in every crevice of your life and in every part of you. Don’t just love Him on Sundays or Wednesdays at bible study. Love Him big. ALL. THE. TIME.

Number two is to love people. Love HIS people. God created everyone - that boss you can’t stand, that jerk that lives next door, that lady that annoys you, the road-rage driver that cut you off, that one mom at the school, and the friend you are fighting with. Fill in the blank with whomever. Jesus said we must love our neighbor, whoever that may be.  

So I encourage you today, wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, to LOVE GOD. LOVE PEOPLE.