What does God like?

I have been thinking over the Christmas period of how easily we sometimes say "Oh, God will understand" or "God will forgive me" for this or that. I agree that it is probably true - God's mercy is able to forgive a great many things. But is that really the point?

God has given us guidelines, principles, laws, commandments, ideals and one living example. We know what is best for us, what God has ordained for us, what God requires of us and even why:

Micah 6:8 He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

He has graced us with not only instructions, but the reason why these instructions were given. If we choose not to do what is good, does it matter that God will understand, or that God will forgive us? He will, but we will still have to live with the consequences of our choices. If we knowingly choose what is not good for us, how can we then complain that we don't have what is good? Perhaps we should rather say:

Hebrews 12:11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on,
however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have
been trained by it.