Obedience to God

Have you ever wondered what the number one thing that God wants from his children? You parents out there what is the one thing that you desire from your children? Well I will bet that obedience is at the number one spot or at least number two. This is what God desires from all of his children. God is looking for obedience from us. The life of King Saul can be an example of what God does not desire and that is partial obedience. In 1 Samuel 15 God gives very clear instruction to king Saul that he is to utterly destroy the Amalekites. He was to wipe them off of the Earth all human and animal life of these people was to be destroyed. Now I am not going to explain here the idea of wiping out a whole race of people and what constitutes a holy war because that is not the point of this post. The point is Saul only half obeyed God. He spared their king and the animals and what was the reason? So he could offer sacrifice. Samuel makes it clear that God desires obedience more than sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22-23). God wants our obedience. Now before we go and pass judgment upon Saul are there areas in your life that are not 100% yielded to God? How often do we offer up our sacrifices of time, money, and praise on Sunday, when we have not been obedient throughout the week? The point is that obedience is the only way to please God. He would rather have us obey him than attend church. I am not saying that church is not important but obedience is more important than our worship. God wants us to obey him and not make excuses for our actions. This week try focus on obedience more than worship.

Lessons from King Saul - Following God

In 1 Samuel 13:1-12 Saul is faced with the dilemma to either follow God's instructions or to give into the people's wishes. As Samuel tarried  waiting on Saul, he was left to wonder if God was with him. Saul had the problem that many of us do from time to time. When God does not answer right away we often get anxious and act at times without making sure that it is God's plan. God often acts outside of our time frame and we need to remember that God is with us no matter what happens. I have come to realize that God answers our prayers with yes, no, wait, and my personal favorite I am not going to tell you. Saul teaches us that it is more important to wait on God than step out without him.

It has been a long time since I have made a post to this blog but I am going to try and blog more of my thoughts and studies.