Matthew 22:37 (KJV) says, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.”

Good morning, my friend.

Jesus was asked what mattered most, and His answer was beautifully simple: Love God with everything you’ve got.

Not just on Sunday morning.

Not just when life is going good.

Not just when the prayers are being answered the way you hoped.

Love Him with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.

Because here is what I have discovered. Whatever gets the biggest piece of your heart will eventually have the biggest influence over your life.

If worry gets your heart, worry will lead you.

If bitterness gets your heart, bitterness will shape you.

If the opinions of other people get your heart, you will spend your life trying to keep everybody happy.

But when God has your heart, everything else begins to find its proper place.

And friend, God is not asking you to love Him because He needs something from you. We love Him because He first loved us.

He loved us enough to send Jesus.

He loved us enough to meet us in our mess.

He loved us enough to give His life on an old rugged cross.

So today, before you give your heart to your schedule, your problems, your phone, or everybody else who needs something from you, give your heart to God.

Love Him first. Love Him fully. Love Him faithfully.

Because when God has your heart, He can change your whole life.

And that is your encouraging word from the Word today.

Psalm 100:5 says, “For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.”

Friend, there are going to be days when life doesn’t feel good.

There will be prayers that seem unanswered, doors that unexpectedly close, people who disappoint you, and circumstances you simply cannot understand.

But I want you to notice what David does not say.

He doesn’t say, “The Lord is good when life is good.”

He says, “The LORD is good.”

That is who He is.

God’s goodness is not determined by what happened to you yesterday, what you are facing today, or what you are worried might happen tomorrow.

And then David reminds us, “his mercy is everlasting.”

You cannot outrun His mercy. You cannot exhaust His mercy. You cannot wake up tomorrow and discover that God used the last of His mercy on you yesterday.

And His truth “endureth to all generations.”

The same God who was faithful to your grandparents is faithful today. The same God who carried you through what you thought would break you before is still carrying you now.

So when you cannot understand what God is doing, anchor your heart in what you know about who God is.

He is good.

His mercy is everlasting.

His truth never changes.

And friend, when everything around you feels uncertain, you can still rest in the certainty of Him.

God has been good. God is good. And God will still be good tomorrow.

What if the reason you have not stepped into what God has for you is because you are still holding onto something He has been asking you to release?

“The longer you entertain what’s not for you, the longer you postpone what is.”

That will preach.

Sometimes we keep giving our time, energy, attention, and emotions to things that are no longer helping us become who God has called us to be.

It might be a relationship.

A habit.

An old hurt.

A disappointment.

A way of thinking.

Or even a season that God has already brought to an end.

Isaiah 43:18–19 says, “Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing.”

Sometimes we are asking God to do something new while we are still clinging to something old.

There comes a moment when faith says, “I am going to trust God enough to let this go.”

You do not have to understand everything God is doing before you obey Him.

You just have to believe that whatever God asks you to release is never greater than what He is preparing you to receive.

So stop giving yesterday permission to steal today.

Release what God has been telling you to release.

Take the next step.

And keep walking.

Because what you are leaving behind may feel familiar, but what God is leading you toward could be better than anything you have imagined.

My friend, do not be afraid to let go. Your story is not ending. God may simply be making room for the next chapter.