His Presents or His Presence?

James 1:16-17 (New Living Translation)

 ¹⁶ So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.^[a] He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.^[b]

Beloved, are you spending all your time praying, reading the bible, going to church so you get what you need and desire from God without a thought of what He desires from you? Are you a selfish taker or a grateful giver? Do you take in all the goodness of God, constantly whining for more-more-more from Him and never give anything back to Him in return? 

What exactly could God want from you? One word-OBEDIENCE. A direction of your will to please Him and not just yourself. He wants you to desire His presence way more than His presents. Don't get me wrong. He didn't make you not to enjoy pleasure and the things that He provided in this earth but as the Creator He alone knows best how things work so He put protection in His word and laws to keep you from harm. He desires that you pay careful attention to and obey those laws so that you're not hurt or destroyed. Violating them costs you a price He never intended you to pay.

The greatest thing about obedience to God is that it is only for your good! God doesn't need anything from us, He is omnipotent, omnipresent and fully contained. Alpha, Omega, beginning and the end, He's in yesterday today and tomorrow right now. Time doesn't constrain Him, He constrains time. He tells the sea and the mountains where to stay put and they obey because they have no choice in the matter. BUT, and here's where it just boggles the mind at His goodness...we humans have choice/free will and can disobey Him if we want to. We, His greatest design of all get to do as we please to our detriment or our delight. Isn't that awesome? He didn't create us as robots to do His bidding regardless of what we think/see/feel. WE GET A CHOICE IN THE MATTER WITH GOD! See...God delights in you. He loves you. He created you. He made plans for you even before you were formed and those plans were all and only for your good (Jer. 29:11). In those good plans He put in you a desire for Him because of His goodness. He knows how much you need Him even if you don't. His greatest plan for you is that you maintain close fellowship with Him so He can protect and sustain you. Isn't that good? Doesn't that make you change your mind from the drudgery of obedience/giving up your will and plans for yourself to the JOY OF OBEYING? If it doesn't, maybe your plans yourself have been so successful and fulfilling which is why you're hanging on to them. Personally, most of my plans for myself stank it up. I let go of them only and after I exhausted every effort trying to satisfy and make myself happy. Went down a lot of roads in search of my dreams and desires and each road was a dead end. Even when I got what I thought I wanted...it left me empty and wanting something more. Finally I found what I was searching for IN HIM not apart from HIM. He took me back in all my messiness. He loved me to changing my ways and my mind and my heart. And He changed my life. God was merciful to me even in the full throes of my consequences so accurately deserved because of my disobedience.  

Don't know where you are today. Only you know that and I know my God will not force Himself upon you but I do know He's pleading with you today to desire His presence way more than His presents. I'm praying with you and for you that you will do just that...DESIRE and OBEY HIM today.