Earning God's Respect

Genesis 4:4-5 KJV
And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

Cain and Abel were brothers, sons of Adam and Eve. Both had grown up under the same roof and under the same discipline and instruction. They had watched their parents worship God and I'm sure had picked up a few lessons on process, procedure and purpose of the worship of this God. Why then would both sons offer sacrifices to God at the same time and one will be accepted and the other rejected?
There's a need for us to check our motives for serving and seeking God.  Our wants, needs and desires all become so important and weighty that we just have to find an immediate solution to them. We come to God, seeking him to wave a magic wand over our problems and make them disappear, forgetting that with God, there's a purpose to every pain. We seek God out only when it is convenient, and when that does not go well, when he says NO or HOLD ON to our requests, we sulk and react badly.
God deserves our awe, respect and fear. Our attittude in worship is far more important to God than the actual act of worship itself. Worship is more of a spirit-act than an actual event and that's why our worship of God must move from the realm of scheduled activities to heart-worship, the type only God's Spirit can inspire.
Any other worship, no matter how good it looks or how sweet it sounds, remains at the realm of the physical and can never earn God's respect. No wonder Cain was mad because his sacrifice was not accepted by God. His attitude was all wrong and it pushed him all the way to hatred and murder.
Watch your worship of God. Does it flow from an appreciative heart that recognises the supremacy and sufficiency of God? Or does it flow from a heart that seeks a reward for worship? Do you seek God for who he is or for what you can get only?
His time of favour is here, so watch your worship.