Here is a devotion to start your day!
A spoken version of this devotion is available through the Still, Here audio reflections podcast.
Scripture: Revelation 2:1–5
But I have this against you, that you left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and repent and do the first works; or else I am coming to you swiftly, and will move your lamp stand out of its place, unless you repent.
Reflection
The church in Ephesus is doctrinally solid and morally serious. They work hard, endure patiently, expose false teachers, and refuse to tolerate evil. On the surface, they look exemplary. Yet Jesus says something piercing: “I have this against you, that you left your first love.”
Somewhere along the way, passion cooled into performance. Zeal for truth eclipsed tenderness of heart. They had not abandoned orthodoxy, but they had drifted from intimacy. Jesus does not say their works are meaningless; He calls them to remember, repent, and return to the love that once fueled those works.
Confession is not only about admitting overt sin. It is also about acknowledging drift—those subtle shifts where our relationship with Jesus becomes more about doing than loving, more about correctness than closeness. The season of Lent gives us space to name this honestly: I have been busy for You, but distant from You.
Love in the wilderness calls us back, not just to better behavior, but to deeper affection. Jesus’ warning is actually mercy. He would rather disrupt our well-oiled religious machine than let us run cold.
Today, let your confession be this: I want to love You like I did at first—and even more.
A Prayer of Presence
Jesus,
I confess not only my failures, but my drift from the warmth of Your love. Interrupt my busyness and correct my coldness. Lead me back to the simple, burning joy of loving and being loved by You. – Amen
Practice for Today
Take a few minutes to remember a season when your love for Jesus felt especially fresh and alive. What were you doing? How were you talking with Him? Choose one small, concrete practice from that season to re-engage today.
Consider This...
In what ways has my faith become more about duty, correctness, or productivity than about love—and what “first works” might Jesus be inviting me to return to?
Carry This Prayer With You Today
Breath in: You are my first love...
Breathe out: ... help me love You more
This work is freely shared. If it nourishes your life with God, you’re welcome to help sustain it.
Excellent one!