Excerpt
Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Mark 12:29-32

Click here to read all of Mark 12:18-34

Prayer
O Lord, how I need to be reminded of what comes first in life. In the midst of all that I have to do, with all sorts of demands upon my time and energy, with my heart being drawn in so many directions at once, it’s easy for me to forget my chief priorities: to love You with all that I am and to love my neighbor. Forgive me, dear Lord, when I let my loves slip.
Thank You for making this so clear and simple. Not that it’s simple to obey faithfully. But the thought and the direction is simple, even enough for a scattered person like me. In each day, in each moment, my top priorities have to do with love . . . love for You and love for my neighbor. My this truth be emblazoned on my mind and heart. May Your Spirit remind me again and again that love matters most of all.
Even this very day, Lord, may I love You with all that I am, in all that I do. Whether working or playing, whether thinking or praying, may I love You, consciously and unconsciously giving my all to You.
And as I love You, may I love others in Your name. Let Your love for the people in my life today flow through me. May they sense, not that I am so great, but that the great God is loving them through me.
Questions to Ponder
What difference might it make today if you were to love God with your heart, soul, mind, and strength?
How might you love someone today in response to the call to love others as yourself? Is there somebody in your life who needs God’s love given through you today?
One Way to Love 
My friend Alan, a member of Irvine Presbyterian Church, expresses his love for God and for his neighbors, in part, by leading church mission trips to South Africa, where he shares God’s love with children.