Today’s Bible Translation

Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 48 GWT, Ch. 49 NIV, Ch. CEB

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Thoughts

God, who “owns the cattle on a thousand hills” does not find pleasure in the sacrifice of bulls or rams or (in our modern time) money. What He desires is our heart, our devotion, our thanks, our praise, our “us”. He wants a people who acknowledge Him for who He is, and what He has done for us. He wants us to desire to know Him, not go through religious motions with no heart. 

I am deeply in love with my wife, the Lovely Lady LeeAnn. Of all the people on Earth, she is the one who gives me a reason to get up in the morning. She is my world. We’ve been married almost 31 years, and I still tell her multiple times a day that I love her. But more than that, I still look for ways to show her that I love her. Not because she requires it, but because I love to make her happy. And I would never dream of doing something that I know would make her unhappy, even though, sometimes I do. And when I become aware that I have disappointed her, I try to be quick to apologize.

LeeAnn works outside the home. Most of the time, I do my work from home. On the days when she has to leave early in the morning, I usually get out of bed to make breakfast for her. I don’t do this because she requires it, or because it’s an obligation. I do it because I love her, and it helps to make her day just a little bit better. 

The relationship I have with my wife is a type, an example, of the relationship God wants to have with us. He desires that we love Him. That we tell Him so. That when we do things for Him, it’s because of that love, not because it’s a requirement. As I find joy in doing things to make LeeAnn happy, God wants us to find joy in the things we do for Him. 

Think of all He has done for us, before we even knew Him! He gave us the gift of life. He gave us a beautiful planet on which to live. He gave us music. He gave us sunshine. He gave us rain. He gave us puppies and kittens and the giggles of children. And He gave us His Son, who so selflessly gave His life so that we could have fellowship with God for all eternity.

For the life of me, I cannot understand people who reject such a God as this.