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The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good Proverbs 15:3

A 10-year-old boy was asked by his mother to do the dishes for the first time. After a lot of grumbling and complaining, he did them. He rushed through the task and darted back to the TV. Five minutes later, his mother stormed into the living room with a plate in her hand that had a big glob of food on it.

“Look at this dish!” she said. “Would you want to eat off this?!” With a sheepish grin, he shrugged and said, “No, but I figure there’s only a 1-in-5 chance I’ll get that plate…I’ll take my chances.”

That’s a pretty accurate picture of human nature. We’ve all been there. We try to get away with the bare minimum. We skip steps, cut corners, and convince ourselves that a little compromise isn’t a big deal. Deep down we think, “The odds of this catching up with me are pretty low… I’ll risk it.” We think no one will notice. And maybe people won’t. But God always does.

Proverbs reminds us that nothing escapes God’s attention — but that’s not something to fear. God isn’t watching from a distance, ready to scold us for every mistake. He’s watching like a loving Father, longing for us to grow into who he created us to be. He cares when we cut corners because he wants to call us into something better.

God isn’t fooled by a quick rinse or a surface-level clean-up, and he’s not satisfied with half-hearted efforts. What he desires is a deeper cleaning — the kind that reaches the hidden parts of our lives that we’ve labeled as “good enough.”

So instead of playing the odds, let’s give God our faithful obedience. Not because we’re afraid of getting caught, but because we’re loved too much to stay where we are. God doesn’t demand perfection — he simply asks for a heart that’s willing, honest, and ready to grow.

Let’s stop settling for “good enough” and give God our very best.

Father, thank you for seeing every part of me and loving me anyway. Help me to stop making excuses and taking shortcuts. Give me the strength to be honest and the willingness to give you my very best. In Jesus’ name, amen.