Love God

**Love God** is the greatest commandment that Jesus reinforced. The Christian shows this love through prayer, meeting with fellow Christians, and reading God's Word.

## Love God

To love God, means to love what he loves (Romans 12:9). We can love the things that Jehovah holds dear as described in Psalm 15, where we read about those whom God considers his friends (Psalm 15:1-5). Jehovah’s friends display what the Bible calls “the fruitage of the spirit.” It includes such qualities as “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, mildness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22, 23).

Jesus' Father, the Creator, cares for those who love him. He can protect them from anything that could jeopardize their faith and their hope of everlasting life (Psalm 91:1, 2, 7-10). He warns us against ways of life that threaten our health and happiness. God teaches us the best way of life (Psalm 73:27, 28; James 4:4, 8) through his Word.

## Prayer

### A privilege

God invites people of all sorts to draw close to him in prayer (Psalm 65:2). Yet, he does not listen to, or accept, all prayers. For example, the prayers of a man who mistreats his wife can be hindered (1 Peter 3:7). Also, when the Israelites persisted in badness, God refused to hear their prayers. Prayer is a privilege. Nevertheless, God will accept the prayers of even gross sinners if they repent (Isaiah 1:15; 55:7).

### How to pray

Prayer is part of Christian worship. Jesus instructed us to pray to his Father, our Creator, Jehovah (Matthew 4:10; 6:9). Also, since we are imperfect, we should pray in the name of Jesus because he died for our sins (John 14:6). His Father Jehovah, does not want us to repeat memorized or written prayers. He wants us to pray from our heart (Matthew 6:7; Philippians 4:6, 7).

### When to pray

Our Creator can hear even silent prayers (1 Samuel 1:12, 13). He invites us to pray on every occasion, such as at the beginning and the end of the day, at mealtimes, and when we face problems (Psalm 55:22; Matthew 15:36).

## Christians meetings

*Main:* Congregation
People reading the Bible at a Christian meeting helps to draw close to God. It is not easy because we live among people who lack faith in God and ridicule his promise of peace on earth (2 Timothy 3:1, 4; 2 Peter 3:3, 13). So we need the encouraging association of fellow believers, and they need us (Hebrews 10:24, 25). Associating with people who love God's Divine Name, translated as Jehovah, helps us to draw close to God. There are meetings of Jehovah’s people that provide fine opportunities to benefit from the faith of others (Romans 1:11, 12).

## Read God's Word

You can draw close to God by meditating on what you have learned from his Word. Contemplate his activities, his advice, and his promises. Prayerful meditation builds appreciation in our heart for God’s love and wisdom (Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1:1-3). You can be close to God only if you trust in him, if you have faith in him. But faith is like a living thing that needs feeding. You must constantly feed your faith by reviewing the basis for your beliefs (Matthew 4:4; Hebrews 11:1, 6).

## References

* GN, *How Can You Draw Close to God?*

1. ↑ bh, *Living in a Way That Pleases God*, p.123-4
2. ↑ GN, *Draw Close*