Lord God,
You are not content with outward obedience
You desire the heart.
You do not merely command our actions;
You command our love.
You said, “Hear, O Israel The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart,
with all your soul,
and with all your might.”
You are worthy of such love, Lord.
You are the One and only
no rival shares Your glory,
no idol compares with Your beauty.
You are not divided,
and neither should my devotion be.
You are whole, and You call me to love You wholly.
I confess, Lord,
that my love is often divided.
My heart drifts toward lesser things,
my soul grows weary,
my strength is spent on pursuits that do not last.
I fear You in word,
but not always in truth.
Forgive me for the half-heartedness
that treats You as one among many loves.
Unite my heart, O Lord,
to fear Your name.
You commanded Your people
to teach these words diligently to their children
to speak of them when they sit and when they rise,
when they walk by the way and when they lie down.
You wove Your truth into the rhythm of life.
So let Your Word be the soundtrack of my home,
the breath in my conversations,
the compass of my day.
Let my lips speak of You naturally,
as easily as breathing,
until my children learn that love for You
is not a ceremony, but a way of life.
You warned Israel not to forget You
when they entered the land of abundance when wells were dug and vineyards bore fruit.
For prosperity often dulls the heart
more quickly than pain sharpens it.
So guard me, Lord,
from the comforts that make me forget You.
Keep gratitude alive within me.
Let every blessing drive me to worship,
not to pride.
You called Your people to remember Your deliverance from Egypt
to fear the Lord and serve Him only.
Remind me, Lord,
that love and fear are not opposites,
but partners in holy devotion.
To fear You is to revere the One I love;
to love You is to delight in the One I revere.
Let both burn brightly in me.
And when my children ask, “What do these commands mean?”
let my answer be clear
“They tell the story of a God who saved us,
a God who is worthy of all our heart.”
Let obedience flow from gratitude,
and love overflow from remembrance.
O God,
engrave the Shema upon my soul
that I may love You fully,
teach You faithfully,
and remember You constantly.
Let my life proclaim that You alone are Lord,
and that Your love is the greatest command,
fulfilled perfectly in Jesus Christ,
who loved the Father completely
and laid down His life for us.
In His holy name,
the name above all names,
Amen.