When we think about devotion to God we often think about attending church on Sundays, reading a daily bible verse or devotional conveniently delivered to our digital mailbox, and praying before a meal or bedtime. But devotion to God is much more than habitual religious routines. Devotion is a posture that must be practiced faithfully. So what is devotion and how do you live devoted to God? Devotion is first and foremost a posture that flows from the heart. It is a commitment to give God all of us. We do life for God and with God. He is the CEO of our homes, families, relationships, careers, talents, and lives. There is nothing that we are unwilling to submit to God. It all belongs to Him.
Discover Who You Are In God
Before you can truly devote your life to God, you must realize who you are in God. And before you can discover who you are in God you must first learn who God is. So who is God and what is His nature? And how can knowing Him help you to know yourself? Well, first, I assume since you are here that you believe that God, the God of the Bible, is the Creator of all things. He created the heavens and the earth, He created the birds of the sky and the beast of the land, He created man and woman, you and me.
His nature is first holy. God is set apart, and unlike anything else He has created. He is all-knowing and all-powerful. God spoke a Word, and life existed. The beginning and the end are what He is. He is full of compassion, mercy, righteousness, and grace. He is the embodiment of love. It is from this nature that you and I exist. We were created in His image to reflect His nature. You are God’s creation.
A Change In Heart
“You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart.”
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Jeremiah 29:13 CSB
The word “heart” is found over seven hundred times in the Bible. The heart sustains the body but is also the soul’s center. In the original Hebrew language, the word heart can also be translated as inner man, mind, will, soul, knowledge, memory, and even as a seat of emotions and passions. When we choose to give our whole hearts to something or someone, we think about it often, serve it with intention, and commit to it through action. This is devotion.
This is why devotion to God requires a change in heart. To devote our lives to God means that God must come first in our thoughts, our knowledge, and our actions. Our hearts must turn toward God. This doesn’t mean that we won’t have a heart for other things or people. But it does mean that God should be number one. And from this heart posture, we begin to desire what is pleasing and acceptable to God.
Surrender
Surrender is one of those words that can ignite an emotional response deep within us. Perhaps a flashback appears in the forefront of our mind of being in the schoolyard when we knew our team could not defeat our adolescent opponent. Or maybe the memory comes flooding back when we dared to enter into a debate with our parents all while using immature principles to persuade them to let us go to that party. There came a moment in our zealous attempt where we realized we would not win the battle. We don’t like surrender. It makes us feel little, inferior, and weak. But surrender to God is an act of humility and worship. When we surrender, we acknowledge that we are the creation and God is the Creator. We relinquish control.
Why It Can Be Difficult
Surrender can be difficult when you haven’t taken the time to learn God’s nature and cultivate a relationship with Him. How can you trust a God you don’t know? But when you open His Word, you learn how holy He is and how much you need Him. Children follow the ways of their parents. They look to them for comfort and instruction. Even in times of correction, they turn to their parents to be soothed. They run to them when they are scared, hug them at times of celebration, and look to them for an approving nod when a friend asks them if they can play on the swing set.
Just like little children, when we decide to surrender to God, we understand that God is the one we should run to in times of trouble, He is the one we should thank for answered prayers, He is the one we should expect to correct us, and He is the one who gives us the approval for every decision in our lives. Children do not think of themselves as weak or inferior for being dependent. Through nurture and love, they understand that they need it. They expect it. In their dependency they find comfort. Surrender to God is a comfort that God wants us to experience.
Spiritual Discipline
Like our faith, our devotion to God should be alive and active. How we live is an expression of the devotion that we confess. Although we may have a heart for God, our human experience can cause us to become undisciplined through distraction, temptation, and our fleshly desires. Like a muscle, spiritual discipline must be worked to be strengthened.
Prayer
Prayer is communion and fellowship with God. It is also reverence. The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) is a blueprint of how we come before God, with reverence, thankfulness, repentance, and request. Jesus demonstrated a perfect example of prayer time with God. He lived a life of prayer.
Read
If you want to know God, then you need to read His Word. God has revealed Himself to us through His Word. And that’s not all. The Word was made flesh through Jesus and “dwelt among us.” (John 1:14) Whether he was teaching or rebuking when Jesus spoke, he quoted the Word because the Word is life and truth.
Study
We read to know but we study to understand. Become a student of the Word. As someone passionate about wellness and who worked in the industry for many years, 1 Timothy 4:8 is a beautiful reminder of which discipline is best overall.
“For the training of the body has limited benefit, but godliness is beneficial in every way, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”
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1 Timothy 4:8 CSB
Holy discipline is the goal. Reflecting the Father is the purpose. This is how we devote our lives to God. There are many things in this life that we can choose to give our hearts to. But devotion to God here on earth prepares us for eternal glory with Him in heaven.
With Love,
Tamara
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References:
Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.
