Busyness is all around us; cluttering our life and thought process as though it belongs. Pressuring us to hurry instead of being still. Life can almost feel like a siren; repetitious, loud, and making it hard for us to think clearly. How much of this is warranted, and how much of this is unnecessary? God is so gracious. Sometimes we are the Martha’s of the world, striving to achieve our own “self-validation”, while God is saying, “Come sit next to me. Rest with me, because you are my beloved. I loved you when you were the vilest of sinners, and I love you now.”

Sometimes we get so busy that we forget that God desires our love. He prefers a simple card that comes from our heart, rather than a thousand eloquent words with no meaning behind them. God wants us to sit at His feet and listen to Him. He wants us to stop rushing from His presence, in order to do things that breathe temporary value, because even the good things, if not done with God in the midst of it, will not have lasting value. They will be a chore list to get done, rather than an offering of love.

In Genesis 4, two men offer a sacrifice to God. Abel is respected for his offering, Cain is not. Was God against vegetables, the offering brought by Cain? Shouldn’t just bringing a sacrifice be sufficient? What is the deeper meaning here?

As parents we desire the very best for our kids. We want to love them with all that we are, but it does not take a rocket scientist to realize that parenting is hard. We mess up daily. This conflicting interest of desiring the best for our kids while being imperfect is a tough battle. Not only do we fall short with things we can change, but feel overwhelmed by things we can’t change.