Was Cain Able?

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Genesis 4:2-5


The most obvious question from the story of Cain and Abel might seem to be "Who did Cain marry?".  (The answer that question is simple; he married his sister, who else?)  What is of more interest to me is the fact that the Lord looked favorably on Abel's offering but not on Cain's.  I've heard more than one speaker claim that Cain should have offered an animal sacrifice, not produce.  To me, this is an absurd position.  A simple keyword search of the Bible results in over 100 references to grain offerings.  The real issue here is not what was sacrificed, but the attitude of the person giving the offering.  The text says that Cain offered "some of the fruits of the soil" while Abel brought "fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock".  The type of offering made no difference, the quality did; if Cain had offered his best produce, with the right attitude, the Lord would have accepted it.

I am very conscious of the fact that I do not have much to offer God.  Other people have more financial resources, musical talent, amazing ability to share God's word with everyone they meet.  In comparison, I can offer very little.  I can write, I have a good memory and I'm good at solving problems.  As I've found out in my years of job searching, my particular combination of skills and attributes is practically worthless from a secular point of view.  How amazing is it that the God of the universe would choose to accomplish anything through me?  I can only pray that these words I'm writing will find their way to someone who can be encouraged by them.