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Five Keys to Divine Increase - Key 1, Love God.
Drawing from Psalm 115:13-14, "May the Lord give you increase more and more", Pastor Mirek Hufton launches a five-part series on divine increase for the new year, beginning with the foundation everything else depends on: loving God. Anchoring the message in Matthew 22:37-38, Pastor Hufton unpacks Jesus' declaration that loving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength is the first and greatest commandment, the fountainhead from which every blessing flows. He challenges the congregation to measure their love for God not by words, but by actions: their giving, their worship, their time in prayer. In a memorable story from his African missionary childhood, Pastor Hufton describes workers discovering a sealed tin box hidden inside a mission house wall, containing the exact amount needed to clear the ministry's debt. Nobody planned it. God did. Long before the need arose. The takeaway is simple but transformative: get the first commandment right, and everything else, spiritually, physically, financially, relationally, begins to align. Love God first. Increase follows.
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Small Group Guide
Five Keys to Divine Increase — Key 1: Love God
Small Group Discussion Guide | World Harvest Church
1. SERMON RECAP
In this first message of the new year, I shared that God's word declares violent increase is available to every one of us in every area of life — spiritually, physically, financially, and relationally. The foundation of all that increase, however, rests on one commandment Jesus called both first and greatest: loving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. When we get this one thing right, everything else begins to fall into place.
2. KEY SCRIPTURE
Matthew 22:37-38 (NKJV) "Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment.'"
3. ICE BREAKER
Think of someone in your life — a parent, a coach, a mentor — who made you feel genuinely loved without any conditions attached. What was one thing they did (not just said) that showed you that love was real?
4. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Getting into it: I said in the sermon that we can easily slip into loving God's blessings more than loving God himself. Be honest — what are some everyday signs that someone (maybe even us) might be doing that without realising it?
2. Digging deeper: Jesus uses four words — heart, soul, mind, and strength — to describe how completely we're called to love God. If you had to honestly score yourself on each one from 1 to 10 right now, which area feels strongest for you, and which one feels like it needs the most work? Why?
3. Going further: I talked about how your actions are a reflection of your love for God — your giving, your service, your time in worship. Do you agree that love for God should show up in measurable, observable ways? What does that look like in a normal Tuesday, not just a Sunday morning?
4. Getting personal: James 4:8 says, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." Can you think of a season in your life when you genuinely drew closer to God? What did that feel like, and what changed in you during that time?
5. Pushing further: I mentioned that God wants us to love Him with all our minds — that means taking our thoughts captive and staying intentionally focused on Him. What are the biggest mental distractions in your daily life that pull your attention away from God, and how do you currently deal with them?
6. Bringing it home: Peter was asked three times, "Do you love me?" — and his whole life afterward was the answer. If Jesus asked you that question this week, what would your honest answer look like in the way you're actually living right now?
5. APPLICATION CHALLENGE
This week, choose one 15-minute window every day — same time, same place — and use it exclusively to express love to God. It could be worship music, a written prayer, reading a psalm out loud, or simply sitting quietly and telling God what you appreciate about Him. Keep it simple, keep it consistent, and at your next group meeting share what shifted — even slightly — in how you felt connected to God by the end of the week.
6. PRAYER POINTS
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Pray for a fresh hunger: Ask God to ignite a deeper, more passionate love for Him in each group member's heart — not just in church, but in the ordinary moments of daily life.
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Pray for distracted minds: Bring before God the specific mental habits, busyness, and worries that compete for your attention, and ask the Holy Spirit to help each person develop a mind that naturally returns to Him.
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Pray for increase: Agree together in faith over the promise of Psalm 115:13-14 — that God will bless and increase every person in this group, and their families, more and more throughout this year.
7. MEMORY VERSE
Colossians 3:2 (NKJV) "Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth."
Leader's Note: Don't rush through the discussion questions — it's okay to linger on just two or three if the conversation is going deep. The goal isn't covering all the ground; it's genuine life change. You've got this!
Daily Devotional
The First and Greatest Thing
Matthew 22:37-38 — "Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment.'"
I want to start this week by asking you a simple but searching question — is God truly first in your life? Not just in your words, but in your actual daily choices? Jesus didn't call loving God one good option among many. He called it the *first* and *greatest* commandment. Those two words carry enormous weight. First means before everything else. Greatest means nothing else comes close. I believe this is the foundational key to divine increase in your life this year. When everything you do flows out of a genuine, passionate love for God — your giving, your serving, your working, your worshipping — everything else begins to align. God isn't asking for your performance. He's asking for your heart. Let's begin this week by simply saying, "God, I want to love You more than anything else."
Father, I want You to be first — not just in theory but in every real decision I make today. Forgive me for the times I've pushed You to the edges of my life. Ignite in me a fresh, consuming love for You this week, in Jesus' name. Amen.
Set Your Mind Above
Colossians 3:2 — "Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth."
I love how direct this verse is — *set your mind*. That's a deliberate, intentional act. It means you have a choice in what you think about. Your thoughts don't just happen to you; you can take them captive and direct them toward God. I've said it before — wherever your mind goes, that's where you eventually end up. Dark thoughts lead you into dark places. Heavenly thoughts lift you into a heavenly perspective. When you love God with all your mind, you're actively choosing to focus on His goodness, His promises, and His presence rather than your problems and pressures. This isn't denial — it's faith. I'm not telling you your challenges aren't real. I'm telling you your God is bigger than all of them. Start choosing intentionally what you dwell on, and watch how your whole outlook begins to shift toward increase and breakthrough.
Lord, I choose today to set my mind on You and on the realities of heaven. When distracting or fearful thoughts try to take over, remind me that I have the authority to redirect my thinking toward You. Help me love You with every thought today, in Jesus' name. Amen.
Draw Near and He Will Draw Near
James 4:8 — "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you."
This verse is one of the most encouraging promises in all of Scripture, and I want you to really take it in today. God isn't distant. He isn't hard to find. He is actually moving *toward* you right now. But He responds to your movement in His direction. When you make the choice to draw near — through prayer, through worship, through reading His Word, through simply acknowledging His presence in your day — He closes the gap. He meets you where you are. Loving God isn't just a feeling you wait for; it's a pursuit you choose. And here's the beautiful thing: the more you pursue Him, the more you discover just how wonderful, how kind, how faithful He really is. That discovery deepens your love, and deeper love leads to greater increase in every area of your life. So take one step toward Him today.
Father, I'm drawing near to You right now, even in the middle of an ordinary day. I don't need a perfect moment or the right words — I just want more of You. Thank You for the promise that when I move toward You, You move toward me. Amen.
Because He's Good
Psalm 118:29 — "Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever."
Why should we love God? I asked myself that question while preparing this message, and the answer kept coming back to the same place — because He is *good*. Not occasionally good. Not good when things go your way. Enduringly, unchangingly, relentlessly good. Every good and perfect gift comes down from the Father of lights, Scripture says. No sickness comes from heaven. No poverty comes from heaven. No depression comes from heaven. That's not His nature. His nature is goodness, mercy, and overwhelming love toward you. And I want to remind you today that the same God who holds the mountains in a scale and measures the heavens with the span of His hand — that God knows your name, knows your need, and is actively working on your behalf. When you truly grasp the goodness of God, loving Him doesn't become an obligation anymore. It becomes the most natural response in the world.
Lord, I thank You today because You are simply, undeniably good. Help me to see Your goodness clearly — in the big miracles and in the quiet, ordinary moments of my day. Let gratitude and love for You rise up in me afresh. Amen.
Pedal to the Metal Love
Mark 12:30 — "And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength."
I told my congregation about riding in a Viper with 800 horsepower — and when that thing launched, it was pedal to the metal. Nothing held back. That's exactly the picture God paints when He describes the love He's looking for from us. All your heart. All your soul. All your mind. All your strength. When you put those four words together — *all, all, all, all* — there's nothing left over. That's a consuming, wholehearted, radical love. And I believe this is the first key that unlocks everything God has for you in this season. Not a polite, distant respect for God, but an all-in, passionate pursuit of Him. As we close out this week, I want to challenge you to reflect on which of these four areas — heart, soul, mind, or strength — needs the most surrender right now. Bring that area to God today. He's not looking for perfection. He's looking for passion.
Father, I want to love You with everything — not halfway, not when it's convenient, but with every part of who I am. Show me where I've been holding back, and by Your grace, help me go all in this year. I love You, Lord. Amen.