Having Hearts to Always fear and Obey God
We are the only ones who have control over our own heart. We can have good hearts that are soft and pliable, so the Lord can mold us as He sees fit. We can have hard hearts that make it almost impossible for us to hear what the Lord is saying to us. We make the choice. God is not going to force us to listen to Him and obey Him. He wants us to do it by our own free will. The children of Israel had hard hearts for a lot of their history. God had to punish them to soften their hearts. When they finally listened to Him, He was so glad. (Deuteronomy 5:29) God said, "Oh, that they would always have hearts like this, that they might fear Me and obey all My commands. If they did, they and their descendants would prosper forever." God delights in us when our hearts are right with Him, and He is happy to pour out abundant blessings. A heart that fears the Lord is a heart full of admiration and respect for the Lord. It is a heart that is always ready to worship the Lord because that he...