Love God

 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. Matthew 22:36-38 

I wonder about my life at times/ I have had some unique experiences. I wondered if God had directed my life in a certain way for a reason. I grew up in a particular denomination and I was stuck in it. I believe God showed me that he was to be our first love, not the denomination I grew up in. I am going to talk about how I feel, my opinion about this subject. Often we are told not to give our opinion but just what the word of  God says. I think, really, as I see denomination after denomination in the Christian world. I was fiercely loyal to that denomination I grew up in for many years. When I left, I felt like I was going against God but in hindsight, I realize it was God showing me something. Our loyalty is to be to God first and foremost. I felt for years God was trying to get me to move. I moved from the church in that denomination to the church in that denomination in another town nearby and back again. In hindsight, I feel like God used my Children to move me out of that denomination because it seems I just couldn't hear him clearly. I had a fierce loyalty that I thought was to God but in reality, it was to a denomination. I was taught that in my early years. When we lived on the farm when I was age 11 to 14, we use to go to church once a month, to a church of that denomination 80 miles away.  We would all pile into a pickup truck and travel 80 miles one way to go to church when God meets with his people in many churches nearby every day of the week. We would visit family and stay with them at their home and on Sunday morning we would find a church of our denomination while the family we stayed with would go tho theirs of a different denomination. So in a way, I felt like I was taught fierce loyalty to a denomination. At least it was modeled for me at a young age.  I feel like I see it today also. Did God give me these experiences to direct me in a certain way?  Pricilla Shirer talked about how our loyalty should be to God first before we are black or white or democrat or republican or whatever else, we should be Christian. I believe that is also what this verse above is saying, Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind. But we find many other things that have our first loyalty.  Sometimes I think it is a denomination and it looks so closely as the real thing. Sometimes it is a political party and we are thinking we are doing God's work when in reality our devotion is really to something other than God. I cannot seem to get Christian churches to meet together for prayer for our nation and our town. Just a small number.  They each have their own prayer meeting. What I envisioned was the Christian Churches meeting together to show a united front to God. It is not happening. Out of 12 churches, I have gotten about three to meet together for prayer and I feel, this is where my opinion comes in, it is because of loyalty to their denomination.  I am trying to do a good thing, I really believe my heart is in the right spot but as I visit with people in their particular church most of the time I feel it is a loyalty to their denomination over God. The funny thing is one of the best supporters of my effort is a pastor of the denomination I grew up in and it has really surprised me. Another pastor that supports me was telling me about a phone call he received and the person was asking what kind of a church it was. The pastor knew what they were asking but he replied, "a red brick Church."  They wanted to know if it was white or black and he kept repeating no it is you that do not understand.  Our loyalty needs to be to God first and I really believe a lot of even pastors are republican or democrat first before they are Christian. Our first loyalty is to be to God himself.  This is my opinion, I believe many times our first loyalty is misplaced on something that almost looks like God but not really on God himself. And that needs to change. I remember when I first started visiting churches to promote my First Step Prayer, I was asked what office I was running for.  It bothered me and still does, that they did not see the real need for prayer to God.  I have thought since then that I cannot run for office or it will look like what I am doing is to get name recognition to get elected to a local city office.  My vision is for Christians to meet together for prayer, to show a united front across the denominational structure to get God's attention for healing our land and our city. Yes, I feel Christians should run for political office but they need to run for God first. Love God with all that you are heart, soul, and mind. God wants to be first, even above a denomination or political party or even a race/ethnicity. Even above economic differences.  God desires to be our first love.  God bless, LVZ.