The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon

“Behold, to obey is better than a sacrifice, and to pay attention is better than the fat of rams.”

—1 Samuel 15:22

We often choose sacrifice—the ritual of religious duty—over obedience and paying attention to the Lord.

But our lives with Christ are not lives of fill–in–the–blank dos and don’ts. They are lives lived in an ongoing essay of obedience and paying attention.

The fill–in–the–blank life will have us checking off tasks on a moral to–do list without ever learning who the Lord is. It’s straightforward—a facts and figures knowledge that means little to us as long as we pass the test. It has us seeing God as a distant deity we must pacify, doing just enough to keep him on our side.

But the essay life will have us walking in humble obedience and paying attention to the Holy Spirit minute–by–minute, day–by–day. The essay life is open–ended. We see and understand the beauty and depth in the story of God’s Word, and that translates into a life that continues to tell his story. It’s not only duty that constrains us but love and a desire to know the Lord more each day. He’s our heavenly Father who knows us intimately and wants us to know him as well (Galatians 4).

The Word tells us repeatedly that God doesn’t want our religious performance; he wants our hearts turned toward him in love and trust.

As we follow Christ’s example of love and obedience, our lives themselves become the sacrifice that pleases the Lord (Romans 12:1–2).

Let’s not settle for fill–in–the–blank lives of rote religion. Let’s learn to know, love, and follow our heavenly Father.

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