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OUR DAILY BREAD             Tuesday, Aug. 29, 1995    
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READ:   Proverbs 3:1-12 
 
         
                  WHAT'S YOUR MOTIVATION? 
 
            "Whom the Lord loves He corrects." 
 
                                - Proverbs 3:12 
 
Willard Aldrich tells a story about his sneaky 
Labrador retriever.  The dog would stay off the 
furniture when Aldrich and his wife were around, 
but as soon as they left the room, he would climb 
into one of their chairs until he heard them return. 
It was the telltale dog hairs and the warm chair that 
gave him away. 
 
What's a pet owner to do?  Animals can't be reasoned 
with -- they have no moral sense.  So Aldrich decided 
to wire the chair with a mild electrical current. 
Sure enough, during the night he was awakened by a 
yelp as the dog ran into another room. 
 
Now, that Labrador didn't love its owners more because 
they disciplined him.  But the disobedience stopped. 
 
Our relationship with God isn't exactly like that 
sneaky dog's response to the Aldriches.  We do make 
conscious moral decisions.  But God disciplines His 
children when they disobey Him (Prov. 3:12).  He 
wants us to obey Him out of our love for Him.  But 
when we rebel, He lovingly provides correction in 
terms we can understand. 
 
The choice is ours.  We can obey God because we 
know disobedience will bring discipline -- or we 
can obey Him because we love Him and desire to 
please Him. 
 
What motivates your obedience? 
 
                        -- Herbert Vander Lugt 
 
   "We love you, Lord Jesus," we often may say, 
       But are we as ready His will to obey? 
 Let's heed what God's Spirit would have us to do, 
  For that's how we show Him a love that is true. 
 
                        -- Dennis J. De Haan 
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             THOUGHT FOR THE DAY 
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        The highest motive for obeying God 
           is the desire to please Him. 
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THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Jeremiah 37-39

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