For example… If kickoff was at 2:30 p.m., the band reported to Memorial Stadium by 9 a.m. We rehearsed for two hours and then stopped for a lunch break. Then, we had to report back in full uniform by 1 p.m. The band plays through its halftime songs outside of the music building an hour before kickoff. Fans gather around to listen, cheer and take in the game day spirit. After playing this little mini concert for fans who are on their way to the game, the band marches in formation through campus toward Memorial Stadium. Nebraskans decked out in red line the streets and peer through openings and windows of taller buildings to cheer as the band passes by. And then, of course, it’s finally time for the main event—the football game!

I promise that for a born and bred Nebraskan, there’s just nothing like it. The atmosphere, the spirit, the buzz in the air… It cannot be beat! I’ve always loved and soaked up every single second of it, and especially for my four years as a college student, I was in Husker heaven. While playing and grooving along to the school’s fight songs at football, basketball and volleyball games, a special love for my team and my state was permanently cemented deep inside me. 

After graduating from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, I moved to Kansas City, Missouri, where I still live. Soon after moving to Kansas City, I found a Husker “watch party” location where I could gather with other Nebraska fans to watch football games. Even now, 17 years later, I still proudly wear my Husker red on game days. I keep pretty close tabs on lots of the Nebraska sports teams, I have a big Husker flag up on the wall of my classroom, and I defend my team’s honor to any non-Nebraskan who tries to talk down about the Big Red. I try my best to remain a passionately dedicated fan, even from several hours down the interstate. 

But no matter how dedicated I am, nothing compares to actually being in Lincoln on a fall football Saturday. Cheering through a TV screen pales in comparison to walking through the gates of Memorial Stadium and taking in the Husker atmosphere in person. It’s one thing to see the players celebrating a touchdown on TV, but it’s another thing entirely to hear the fight song sounding triumphantly and joining in with 90,000 cheering fans to celebrate a score. It’s one thing to maybe pop some popcorn to enjoy during the game on the couch, but it’s another thing entirely to sink your teeth into that warm slice of Valentino’s pizza (from the box with the inscription, “handmade and baked fresh in Memorial Stadium”). It’s one thing to post on social media in either excitement or disappointment after a game, but it’s another thing entirely to be surrounded by fans who share your same allegiance and emotions. 

Bottom line, there’s nothing like being there in person. I know this full well, which is why I have resolved to drive north on I-29 at least once every fall to go to a Nebraska football game in person. I’ve done it every single year since graduating 17 years ago! And when I’m in Lincoln, I feel my Husker pride and excitement being renewed. When I return to the place where I first truly felt the contagious energy and passion of being a Nebraska fan, my heart and mind remember what it feels like to be a part of Husker Nation. Then, I take my renewed zeal back home with me, and it powers me through another year of supporting my home team.

In one of Jesus’ letters to the churches near the beginning of Revelation, He tells the church in Ephesus that it has forsaken its first love. The church has let its fire for the Lord dwindle and is in need of renewal. He encourages the people to recover the love they first had for Him. Here are His words: 

Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. -Revelation 2:4-5a

It seems like this church once had a fervent, passionate love for God, but the people had lost their way. Well, perhaps they were actually still doing the right things, but they weren’t doing them out of earnest love anymore. What might this look like? Maybe they were going to church but only out of habit. And maybe they were studying God’s Word, but not because they really wanted to, it was just a box to check off a daily to-do list. And maybe they were singing songs of praise and worship, but they weren’t really thinking about what they were singing. They were just singing because everybody else was singing, and it seemed like the right thing to do. 

Can you relate at all? If you stop and think about your spiritual practices, is there anything you’re doing because it’s just an almost mindless habit? …or a box to check off on your daily to-do list? …or it’s just something everybody else is doing, so you’re following suit? As my Bible Study Fellowship lesson reminded me last fall, to fight for Biblical truth without a love for God and others is to miss the truth entirely. When you replace love with habitual activity, then your deeds and actions are hollow. Although you probably mean well, just going through the motions is meaningless. God was calling the church in Ephesus to return to its first love, Him, and He is calling you to return to the things that nurture your love for Christ. 

Just like I return to Lincoln every fall to rediscover and re-energize my love for my dear Nebraska Huskers, God wants you to remember and return to the heights of His love. Remember when you were a brand new believer, and life with God seemed so fresh and exciting?! Remember when you found yourself on a spiritual mountaintop, and God felt more alive than ever in your heart?! Don’t let yourself get too far away from those feelings of passion and fervent love. Turn back, and do the things you did at first, as the passage said. 

What does that look like practically speaking? Well, your answer is different from mine. Each individual believer has a personal relationship with God, so there’s no cookie cutter answer here. Although that might seem disappointing, I think it’s really the best case scenario. A vibrant, loving relationship with God is not mass produced and then replicated from one believer to another. It’s personal!

So… Think back. When did you first truly fall in love with Jesus? What circumstances surrounded that vibrant love? Was there something that helped you finally surrender to Him? Whatever it was that first sparked your love for Christ and/or helped it mature along the way, don’t forget about that thing!! It’s easy to fall into just checking boxes and continuing on with habitual activities that feel like items to check off a list. But if you’re engaging in spiritual practices without a foundation of vibrant love for the Lord, then anything you’re doing is empty.

Remember when you were on the spiritual mountaintop? Remember when you were on the heights? Remember those special, Spirit-filled moments! Then, make a plan for getting back there. Repent, turn back, and do the things you did at first. If you don’t, you may lose your ability to shine and reflect the light of Jesus, as the next verse says: 

Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. -Revelation 2:4b

Jesus is serious about wanting His children to be rooted in love for Him that supersedes anything and everything else in life. Don’t you yearn for a life with that kind of love as its foundation? What changes can you make today to get back to that kind of living? Everything starts in the heart. When your heart is in the right place and full of Jesus, your life in Him will be full of divine peace and joy. 

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. -Proverbs 4:23