In Mark 12:30 Jesus said: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”

We could take a lifetime to fully grasp the implications. With each new year we gain new insights, and seek fresh strength, to put those words from Jesus into practice.

With that in mind, let me restate that verse with an emphasis on the word “all.”

“Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart and with ALL your soul and with ALL your mind and with ALL your strength.”

Not SOME of your heart, soul, mind and strength, but ALL.

Let me share a quick story which brings this idea into focus.

When Robert De Moor was a teenager he went door to door in his church’s neighbourhood. He went with one of the church elders. They were handing out invitations to Sunday services.

They encountered a man Robert described as “crusty.” He said: “I know you guys—you’re just after my money.” 

What the elder said in reply shocked young Robert. “No,” he said, “we’re not just after your money. We want it all—your possessions, your time, your work, your heart and soul, your body—everything.”

Then he said one last thing to make it clear that this wasn’t about the church, but about God. “God deserves no less.”*

I wonder how the man at the door responded! 

I think I would have handled that situation differently. But the elder’s reply certainly was memorable. It also drove home a point. 

God doesn’t just want some of us, he wants all of us. Your brain can glorify him and serve others. Your strength can glorify him and serve others. Your wallet can glorify him and serve others. Your time can glorify him and serve others. Your skills can glorify him and serve others. 

The more we give the better it gets.

Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart, soul, mind and strength.

God doesn’t just want some of us, but all of us.

---

Notes:

-*Robert De Moor, Reformed: What it Means, Why it Matters, 2nd ed (Grand Rapids: Faith Alive, 2009), 43.
-The Up Devotional is published 5 days a week (Monday-Friday) and returns on April 7, 2025.
-Bible quotes are from the NIV.