I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.
REVELATION 2:4
When we are in love, we will do anything to be with the one who has captured our heart. In fact, we not only long to be with that person but would literally do anything for him or her. Many of us begin our relationship with God overwhelmed with a revelation of his love, grace, and mercy, and there is nothing that we wouldn’t do to try to please him. Our earnest desire is to be with him and become like him.
We love to spend hours in his presence, his Word, and his house. It seems as though every sermon was written just for us and that God is speaking directly to us. We see his providential hand guiding us and acknowledge his presence and provision constantly.
It is only by continually strengthening our heart that we will be able to sustain this kind of passionate commitment to God for the duration of our Christian walk. In the same way that a natural relationship left alone will just fizzle out and eventually die, so too will our relationship with God. We all have a honeymoon phase in our relationship with Jesus; and then comes the work of building a relationship that will endure. And, as in every relationship, it takes work to make the relationship work.
I have found that, after all these years, my love for the Lord has deepened so much that I would not even want to return to the honeymoon phase. There is something that happens when you walk together through mountaintop experiences and the deepest valleys — when you discover in your darkest hour that he is still God, he still loves you, he still cares for you, he will never leave you, and that all things ultimately work together for good.
This love affair need never diminish, grow stagnant, or cold. It can continue to remain red-hot and passionate as long as God’s Word, not Hollywood, is your standard for love.
MOMENT OF REFLECTION
How has your love for God changed over time? Is it deeper now than at first?
If not, what do you need to do to get closer to Jesus? He has not moved.