“God, I Give You My Heart”

Our Daily Walk with Christ Sabbath Devotional – January 3-4, 2025

“Jesus declared, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ ” —Matthew 22:37

In 2025, we have the opportunity to live differently by fully dedicating ourselves to God. Love for God is the foundation of our appreciation for Christ’s sacrificial gift of His life to redeem us from sin. True love for God and Jesus Christ reveals a believer who practices the spiritual commitment to honor and revere God. When we choose to possess humility and a teachable spirit, God, the Holy Spirit converts our hearts and begins the lifelong work of spiritual transformation.

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” —1 John 2:15

“Give us this day” equates to a daily test of our love, faith, and trust in God. From the moment we open our eyes to the new day, we are the recipients of God’s love, grace, and mercy, how will we respond? The [always present] conflict within our hearts forces us to choose between pleasing ourselves or surrendering in humility to God. Our choice reflects the true status of our heart—either I give my heart to God, or it belongs to me.

“O my son, give me your heart. May your eyes take delight in following my ways.” —Proverbs 23:26

The earnest cry of “God, not my will, but Your will be done” or “Lord, reveal to me Your plan for today” reveals our desire to surrender to God for the new day of mercies. Giving our heart to God acknowledges that we understand our plight with sin, we cannot gain victory over sin without Divine Help.

“Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’ ” —Matthew 16:24

Can you recall a school exam that required one essay answer or fill-in-the-blank instead of multiple choice with various answers? Jesus tells us if we desire to follow Him there is only one way, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” Salvation has one path. The only way for us to inherit eternal life is to surrender our heart and its never-ending desires. Taking up our cross involves no human deviations, we must obey God.

Galatians 5:22-23, The Fruit of the Spirit identifies the attributes of Christ’s Righteous Character. In addition, “Love, humility, surrender, faith, trust, and obedience” are the additional package of spiritual characteristics that we must have to remain in right standing with God, only then are we covered with Christ’s Righteousness. Our God-given gifts are love, faith, and a sound mind [Romans 12:3 and 2 Timothy 1:7], we pray for Divine strength and use our gifts to overcome sin and its consequences.

“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.” —1 John 5:3

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17). God’s commandments extend beyond the Ten Commandments, the Scriptures give us His Righteous Precepts which guide our thoughts, spoken words, behaviors, and lifestyles. Receiving the reward of the Crown of Life mandates a mindset and the perseverance to live a life of no compromise.

“Be holy, for I Am Holy.” —1 Peter 1:16

Giving our hearts to God is a free-will choice. Righteousness is God’s standard of spiritual excellence that requires our cooperation of daily surrender and obedience empowered by Jesus’ strength. Heart conversion, daily spiritual growth, and character transformation [Sanctification] are performed by the power of the Holy Spirit in our earthly lives to prepare us for the spiritual perfection of eternal life.

Lord God, in humility, we give our hearts to You. We ask You to speak to our hearts and lead us in our earthly journey as we prepare for Jesus’ Second Coming. In Jesus’ Holy Name, we pray in faith, Amen.

© 2024 STEPS 2 Success with Spiritual Solutions