What else does God want from us?

What else does God want from us? Since it says what else, obviously this isn't the only thing God wants from us. Further, since this is part two, this is, possibly, the second thing God wants from us. Something that comes after we love God. Any ideas about what it is?

What else does God want from us? is article #2 in the series: What does God want. Click button to view titles for entire series

Part 1 - What does God want from us? pointed out arguably the number one thing.  If you haven't read it yet, I encourage you to check it out.

Here, we look at a second thing God wants from us.  It's so important that without it, the first one is pretty much irrelevant.

Have you figured out what it is?

This series was originally from July of 2011.  As mentioned, this is part two.  Part three will be the flip side - what does God want for us.  After all, this is a two way relationship if we do it right.

So here it is, with updates as of June 2022. Updates are identified as such with brown text like this. This allows keeping some important context related to the original version.

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 Three weeks ago, I wrote about how God wants our love.

Two weeks ago, I was going to write this article. But the web hosting site was down. It didn't get written.

Last week, I was going to try to write this article again, but the Dragons in Heaven thing happened. This article didn't get written. Again.

Now it's three weeks later. It's going to get written (unless something else happens this morning), but in a rather different way than it would have 3 weeks ago. Which I think means the original concept was correct. This just fine tunes it. Of course, all that was eleven years before this 2022 update.

So - have you figured out what else God wants from us?

 Time.

Our time.
In His way.

You can hopefully see where "time" might be important.  We can feel all the love we want for someone - even for God - but if we don't take the time to say it and show it - does it really matter?  Think about your parents - did they love you and take the time to show you - and how did that impact you?  If you have kids - think about them - do you love them and take the time to show them - and how do you think it impacts them?  It's no different with God.  He's our "Father" - and we're invited to be His "kids".  And with Jesus - there's an invitation for a relationship - as in a friend.  The same thinking applies there.  So yeah - time is really important.  So let's continue.

The idea for this actually got started back at the end of May 2011 although I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do with it. At that time, I sent myself 2 notes from reading Nehemiah.

 The 1st passage was Nehemiah 9:26-37 -

The Israelites Confess Their Sins

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Ne 9:26 “But they were disobedient and rebelled against you; they put your law behind their backs. They killed your prophets, who had admonished them in order to turn them back to you; they committed awful blasphemies. 27 So you handed them over to their enemies, who oppressed them. But when they were oppressed they cried out to you. From heaven you heard them, and in your great compassion you gave them deliverers, who rescued them from the hand of their enemies.

Ne 9:28 “But as soon as they were at rest, they again did what was evil in your sight. Then you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies so that they ruled over them. And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time.

Ne 9:29 “You warned them to return to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, by which a man will live if he obeys them. Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen. 30 For many years you were patient with them. By your Spirit you admonished them through your prophets. Yet they paid no attention, so you handed them over to the neighboring peoples. 31 But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.