Love on Display

“I remember concerning you the devotion of your youth, the love of your betrothals, your following after Me in the wilderness,”  Jeremiah 2:2

Devotion – Are you more in love with God today than the day that He rescued you from your life of tragic despair?  Or have you become accustomed to His grace?  Do you find yourself thirsting for time with Him, anticipating your next moment in His presence?  Or have you succumbed to the appointment schedule with God?  Does solitude with the Creator hold out more joy than you can imagine?  Or are you content with a quick acknowledgement between tasks?

Devotion is not a word taken lightly.  Devotion is much more than friendly accommodation.  It’s much deeper than “living together”.  It’s much more intense than “date night”.  God remembers, says Jeremiah, the time when you were devoted to Him.  After He reached into your life with the hand of a saving father.  After He pulled you from the pit.  After He set your course toward eternal purposes.  But what a sad commentary now.  Now God “remembers”.  What was once true of our first love is now a faded memory.  Now God longs to have us back, like the joyous day of the wedding, reveling in the passion of His new bride.

Hesed, the Hebrew word used for “devotion”, says a lot more than simply emotional commitment.  Hesed is the same word used to describe God’s mercy, loving kindness, goodness and faithfulness.  It is one of the most important words in the Old Testament.  It speaks of the covenant relationship established by God.  It proclaims His everlasting love, His continual gracious benevolence toward us.  Do you want to see hesed in action.  Read Psalm 136 where the word occurs twenty-six times.  This is devotion.  Love on display.

Once we loved God passionately.  Once we threw ourselves completely on His grace.  Once we trusted Him without reservation.  On the wedding night, we came to Him, ready to give all we were into His loving arms.

God wants you back.