Developing your character

Did you know that God is interested in developing your character? Well, it is true. However, the only way that can be possible is through one very important factor. That one factor is mere obedience. We should obey what we already know to be God's will. Disobedience on the other hand, can be very risky and is costly. Obeying God requires stepping out of ourselves and having the faith to just do what we are told even if we don't understand it in the moment. Obedience is even more important than sacrifice. Affirmation comes after the obedience. Obedience indicates your faith in God.

Obedience is so important. It is overlooked, to say the least.
Let's look at the definition of the word obey:

"to comply with or follow the commands, restrictions, wishes, or instructions of"

We are taught to obey our parents, right? Why? Because they just want to have authority over someone and have a say in something? No! It is because your parents are supposed to have the best interest in your being and you are taught to obey them so that you will be safe and do what is best. Don't you think that is why God wants you to obey Him? He isn't trying to be mean or controlling.
He wants the best for you and He wants you to be happy and safe...the same thing any parent would want for their child(ren). 

Keith Green wrote this song and I think it speaks for itself:

"To obey is better than sacrifice

I don't need your money
I want your life
And I hear you say that I'm coming back soon
But you act like I'll never return

Well you speak of grace and my love so sweet
How you thrive on milk, but reject My meat
And I can't help weeping of how it will be
If you keep on ignoring My words
Well you pray to prosper and succeed
But your flesh is something I just can't feed

To obey is better than sacrifice
I want more than Sunday and Wednesday nights
Cause if you can't come to Me every day
Then don't bother coming at all
La,la,la etc.

To obey is better than sacrifice
I want hearts of fire
Not your prayers of ice
And I'm coming quickly
To give back to you
According to what you have done
According to what you have done
According to what you have done"

Obedience is better than sacrifice. Now, that is a pretty big deal! We are going to be judged by what we have done, meaning we are going to be judged according to our obedience!

1 John 5:21 says:

"Dear Children, keep away from ANYTHING that might take God's place in your hearts"

2 John 1:9 states:

"Anyone who wanders away from this teaching has no relationship with God. But anyone who remains in the teaching of Christ has a relationship with both the Father and the Son."

Obedience is following God's Word, completely! Will we fail at that? Yes, we will. But...we are to aspire 100% with our whole heart, mind and body to fulfill God's commandments and His Word. As you read through the Bible we learn that obedience goes beyond just obeying the 12 Commandments. 1 John 2:15-17 tells us:
"Stop loving this evil world and all that it offers you, for when you love the world, you show that you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only the lust for physical pleasure, the lust for everything we see, and pride in our possessions. These are not from the Father. They are from this evil world. And this world is fading away, along with everything it craves. But if you do the will of God, you will live forever"

Our obedience speaks for itself. We are either all in or not in at all.
Two in a half men star Angus Jones spoke on his experience on finding God.
(Click here to watch his testimony)  I love how he says "your either hot or you're cold", "we need to pick our side now", "you need to be 100% or nothing at all", "if you're gonna be for the world be for the world, you're doing so much harm being half in and half out. You're harming yourself and those others, who might actually want to know the truth", "chose you this day whom you will follow"...this is so true! This world is going to be testing you and you will have to chose wisely.

You can't be half in and half out, that equates to being lukewarm.
So, the question that I will leave you with, is this: Are you all in or all out?