Half Hearted...


In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. -Genesis 4:3-5

At first glance at this text my initial reaction was, “Why God?” But after rereading it again I began to realize that there are some strong reasons why God did not look upon Cain’s offering as unacceptable. As it appears Cain brought an offering to the Lord, but Abel, brought an offering that was far superior. Abel brought his best to God first. Fat in those days was a precious commodity. So for Abel to bring not only fat, but fat from the first born was an act of total trust to God. Cain brought what appears to be leftovers, or “some” as compared to his brother who brought his best.

Besides the lesson of giving God our best, the second lesson I can learn from this story is to not have the attitude Cain had. If I truly give God my best then I won’t have to worry about what is to come. But however, if I do not give God my best then can I seriously expect Him to reward? The phrase of doing your best for God should be at the corner stone of my foundation. But what I think I lost this past year was my focus upon that cornerstone. Today, I want to rekindle that. Give God my best and don’t worry about the rest. Simple catch phrase, but hard to do.

Lord give me strength to do this, and thanks for the lesson.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Living with the opportunity

When God Moves I freak out!

How do I look?