Jesus taught us to love God and love others.

Matthew 22:36-40

Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

In a very simple and clear way, Jesus was setting priorities for us. Simply stated, but not simple to follow.

How do you love God with all your heart? How do you love your neighbor and care for them like you care for yourself?

But Jesus said that all the law and the prophets (the Old Testament) can be distilled down to these two commandments.

All we have to do is keep two commandments. That’s it.

Love God. Love others.

Some people make New Year’s resolutions.

I’m going to lose 10 pounds. I’m going to read my bible every day. I’m going to travel the world. I’m going to get a new job. I’m going to stop smoking. I’m going to spend more time with my family. The list goes on and on …

All of these things may be good to do. Good for our health. Good for our relationships.

But, how do we prioritize them? What is the most important? What should we do first?

Loving God with all your heart, soul, and mind can cover a lot of things.

If you are loving God, you are praying, reading your bible, attending church, loving your spouse, and many other good things.

Where to begin? What to do first, second, third?

There’s only so much time in the day. You can’t do everything.

Martin Luther famously said, “I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer.” He was said to have gotten up earlier in the day, so he could pray and spend time with God.

Loving your neighbor. Loving others. Which others? Which is first, second, third?

What about the church? Where does it come in? Loving God or loving others or both?

I heard a preacher say one time that he had made an idol of the church, working so many hours as a pastor, that he had put it ahead of his relationship with God and his family. Where is the balance?

Obviously, you can’t spend 20 hours a day in prayer. You can’t fast every day. Eventually, you have to eat and drink. The point is that there has to be a balance.

And there are so many things to balance. You need to pray, read your bible, go to church, love your spouse, serve others, make a living for your family, keep a good home, feed the hungry, visit the sick and incarcerated, honor your mother and father, etc. etc. etc.

But, then there’s also the ever popular: follow your dreams, fulfill your career ambitions, be all that you can be, become self-actualized (found nowhere in the Bible).

Even so, there are many good and important things to do. You could stress out over all that you have to do. But, that’s not right.

Jesus says:

Matthew 11:28-20 — Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

His yoke is easy and his burden is light.

So, you may be thinking; ok, this is where the top 10 priority list comes in. Let us have it. What is the answer? The list of 1, 2, 3, etc.

Nope. Too easy and too hard.

Back to the basics. Love God. Love others.

Love God first, because it’s the greatest commandment. This includes many things and many commandments that Jesus gave us. But first, you have to be on speaking terms with God. That means praying (talking to Him), and reading His word (Him talking to you). If you’re on speaking terms with God on a daily basis, that’s a great place to start. Imagine not speaking with your spouse every day. That would not do well for your relationship. Same with God.

Love others, next. Again, where to start and who gets the priority?

Your spouse. He or she should get the priority. There are many scriptures that support this.

Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;

From the very beginning, God said that a man should leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife.

If you don’t have a spouse, you can double down on loving God. Paul told the single people to do as much.

1 Corinthians 7:32-34 — But I would have you without carefulness. He that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please the Lord: But he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife. There is difference also between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman careth for the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit: but she that is married careth for the things of the world, how she may please her husband.

Time is the scarcest commodity we have. We run out of it every day, and we’re not guaranteed tomorrow.

Spend time with God in prayer and in His word.

Spend time with your spouse pleasing her, pleasing him.

There’s a lot to do, but that’s a good place to start.

May God Bless.