My Failure and my Discovery

Hello Friends!
Today, in the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy, I came across what may be the best summery of what God desires from mankind:

"And now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul" ~Deuteronomy 10:12

Here God himself is saying that this is all he really wants from us is love, devotion, and obedience. Simple enough right?
Wrong. This is actually the whole problem. We don't love God "with all our heart." Instead, we have chosen other things to give our hearts to. If you have read some of my last messages you have seen that I have lately been dedicating myself to "seeking the Lord with all of my heart." And what have I found? I have found that even my most sincere and earnest attempts at seeking God are still not that impressive. The more I try to seek God the more I see that I do not have the ability to please Him with my futile efforts.
And here, my friends, lies the secret to the Christian faith. We are incapable of meeting God's standards. Do not be deceived into thinking this only applies to nonbelievers. Again, we are all incapable of meeting His standards. And it is only when we fully realize this that we are able to truly please God. And how do we then please God?

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!" ~Galations 2:20,21

Look again at the verse from Deuteronomy that says what God wants from mankind. Jesus was the only one who was able to actually do those things. Everyone else failed. Yet God took the righteousness that Christ earned and gave it to us. And God took the punishment we earned and gave it to Christ. This is the Gospel message: We can be justified by faith in Christ, apart from what we do.
Why is it that we who have been enlightened to the truth so easily forget our foundation? Yes, I shall continue to seek God with all of my heart. Yet I must seek Him only as one who has already obtained the glory and righteousness that Christ earned for me. Again:
"The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

With His Live,
Charlie