Obedience...ugh

I have a new puppy in the house.  Her name is Belle.  Belle is a Chocolate Labrador Retriever.  She is a beauty.  She keeps me entertained by her pure joy and excitement over the smallest of things.  When I come in the door, her tail starts going so hard that her butt wags too!  I really love Belle and I love almost everything about her.  Notice I said "almost everything"...
After having my Yellow Labrador, Lady for 13+ years, it is rather hard to deal with some of the stuff Belle tends to do.  Lady was always very obedient, heeded commands (until she got old, then she was just cranky), didn't chew on stuff she wasn't supposed to chew on and basically could be trusted in the house alone when you were gone for a few hours.  She was a great dog who I miss very much.
Belle, I love her, but man she is not very obedient.  And let's face it, a dog can be cute, smart, and funny, BUT if she is not obedient, she is not a very pleasing dog.  I love Belle, but she drives me crazy because sometimes she is just not very obedient yet.  When she doesn't obey, all that cuteness disappears and I only see rebellion!  I am not a big fan of rebellion.
It's not unlike us with our relationship with God.  God is not a big fan of rebellion either.  Now don't get me wrong. God loves us, He adores us, I think we sometimes make God laugh.  But God wants more than us just looking good, doing some good stuff every once in a while, and entertaining Him.  He wants obedience.  When we don't live obedient lives, we live rebellious lives.  Rebelling against God.
1 Samuel 15:22 But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.
Make no mistake, God loves you.  He is so glad you are happy and enjoying life!  But His greatest desire is for you to be happy and enjoying life while offering Him your obedience to His will and way.
Take care,
Rod