Deuteronomy 19.9 summarizes God’s requirements of people: love Him and walk forever in His ways. Think how simple what God requires from us really is, love Him and obey Him.

Typically we focus on the obey part and then become discouraged that it will be hard, costly and impossible.

The imagery really is to be like that of the new husband who is asked to love his new bride and not become unfaithful to her. When we are head over heels in love with someone, loving them is easy and cheating on them seems like an utter impossibility.

So we are to be utterly in love with God such that His commands are a joy and not a burden.

Most religion focuses upon obeying God rather than loving God.

Muslims find the idea of a loving God unthinkable. Allah is to be obeyed not loved neither does he love but rather commands from his residence.

The Bible is really a love story, a love of the Creator for His broken and wayward creation. It tells of His love so great that He sacrificed His greatest asset, His perfect Son, in order to win the hearts of those who are born predisposed to hating Him.

Jesus gave us only two commands really, love God and love our neighbor. Simple things really, because the desire to love and be loved is greater than any other desire in our beings.

We just need to let the desire to love run free toward God, not self, and toward the benefit of others and not our own.

Living this way will ensure our pleasing God and we will find also, the best life, the life we have always wanted.