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Obedience = Dependence


Every day we see them on their busy quest- robins gathering worms and flying back and forth to their nests. Baby birds are fascinating to me, how they will slumber, sightless, and then when they sense their mama is near, all those mouths open simultaneously, reaching up for food, trusting she will feed them.


Psalm 81:10 begins with an echo of Exodus 20:2- “I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” In Exodus, this is the introduction to the 10 commandments. But in Psalm 81, this familiar phrase is followed by this one statement, “Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.” Verse 11 tells us that the people did not listen, they would not submit. The connection is clear and begs the question- how is obedience like opening your mouth wide, waiting for God to fill it?


Obedience = trust and dependence, even when we don’t understand. Even when it’s uncomfortable, even when it doesn’t feel good, obedience says “You are God. Your ways are higher than mine. I don’t always know why You tell me this, but I will trust You.”


Those baby birds around our house can’t even open their eyes. They are utterly dependent. And faithfully, they are filled.


May we be small in our own eyes, humble enough to trust that God is God, willing to obey Him. When we do, He is faithful to fill us with everything we need.

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