My basketball coach in junior high was a no-nonsense coach. That’s an especially tough position to take when you’re dealing with middle school boys, but he laid out his expectations and “that was that.” If you goofed off in practice, you didn’t play in the game. If you goofed off in the game, you were immediately benched and ran suicides alone in practice the next day. But the team loved and respected him, and every player wanted to please him.
Some people look at God as a no-nonsense God. They see a God who has laid out His rules and expectations, and they imagine that God finds pleasure in punishing those who violate His will. However, such is FAR from the case (2 Pet. 3:9; Matt. 23:37). You see, it’s similar to the situation with our coach. Once we spent time with him and got to know him, that’s when a bond was formed and we wanted to rise to his expectations and excel at them FOR HIM. Isn’t that the same (shouldn’t that be the same) with God? Do you long to just make HIM happy?