Delight in God and He gives good desires…

These days are full. We just bought a house. We like the one we’ve lived in but at our age, we decided to move while we can, not when we have to. The house is one of 66 bungalows, all different, surrounding a 3-4 level retirement facility so when we cannot manage our lives, we just move across the street.

The new home needs a few changes, mostly flooring from carpet to no carpet, and better lighting. Yesterday we spent the day searching our options for other things and came home tired. Then we got a call from someone who challenged our way of doing things. He thought we were not doing enough research, but was not aware that our ‘research’ was done on our knees.

Earlier we put a deposit on another place and God made it clear: “Do not buy that house!” However, this one was given His direction from start to finish. Flooring, and other choices came easy after prayer and understanding His will on all matters. For that reason, the challenge to our ‘research’ was somewhat of a test. Will we trust God, or do we need to spend hundreds of hours on the Internet?

Today’s devotional led me to these verses and blesses my heart. If we are trusting God, does it matter what the surveys, reports, consumer comments, etc. say?

Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments! (Psalm 112:1)
I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:8)
Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors. (Psalm 119:24)
For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, (Romans 7:22)
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. (Psalm 1:1–2)

While our ‘advisor’ might scoff or think we are being lazy, the Word of God is clear; He wants us to seek His will, not out of desperation, or any other reason than we trust Him and delight in discovering that His will is never the wrong thing. No matter where He leads us, His love is behind all that He does on our behalf.

Not only that, we can see His leading. The first sales person told us enough that we knew what not to buy. The second one revealed that a big sale was coming up and we could get better prices in a couple weeks. It was that way with the next ones we talked to until we found the best prices and choices for our needs. We could sense God’s leading in each case and know quite well that God’s name is not spelled Google.

I’ve not told our ‘advice giver’ how we do research, but hope for the opportunity. While stress in making decisions does happen, once the will of God is known, that stress is replaced with great delight and a sense of His love and safe-keeping.

PRAY: Jesus, my prayer today is the same as the psalmist who wrote: “Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.” (Psalm 25:4–5) I’m so thankful for You and truly do delight in Your will.

What delights God?

 
When Eve was tempted in the garden, Genesis 3 describes her response as “delight” meaning a desire or inclination to want something. Later, Numbers 14 says God will bring His people into the land because He “delights” in them, but this is a different word. It means to take a high degree of pleasure or mental satisfaction in something.

I’m thankful for this difference because I feel God’s delight often. Those around me, even my hubby, sometimes assume that when I express delight in something, I want it. They might try to give it to me, but I have to explain that just because I like something, whatever it is, does not mean I want it. Some examples? Horses, unusual paintings, clothing in a store window or jewelry that someone is wearing. I’ve even had friends take off their necklace and put it on me because I said I liked it.

As for God’s delight, there are many examples of what gives Him satisfaction. For instance:

The Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers... (Deuteronomy 30:9)
Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the Lord loved Israel forever, he has made you king, that you may execute justice and righteousness. (1 Kings 10:9

Most of the use of this term describing what delights God is in the Psalms and the Prophets:

He brought me out into a broad place; he rescued me, because he delighted in me. (Psalm 18:19)
He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him; let him rescue him, for he delights in him! (Psalm 22:8)
Let those who delight in my righteousness shout for joy and be glad and say evermore, “Great is the Lord, who delights in the welfare of his servant!” (Psalm 35:27)
Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart. (Psalm 51:6)
The Lord was pleased, for his righteousness’ sake, to magnify his law and make it glorious. (Isaiah 42:21)
Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.” (Jeremiah 9:23–24)
For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings. (Hosea 6:6)

As for other verses that tell me what I should take delight in, there is only one verse in the NT that even uses this term and it echos several OT verses that say the same thing:

His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. (Psalm 1:2)
Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them. (Psalm 111:2)
Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it. (Psalm 119:35)

The NT verse: “For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being.” (Romans 7:22) However, this passage goes on to describe this inner delight conflicting with sin and the battle to serve God when sin wants something else.

So why does God focus on what delights Him in the OT and says nothing about it in the NT? I’ve heard people say that they want to “please God” but that is not a NT issue. Romans 3 is clear that we all fall short. The only One who pleases God is Jesus Christ and it is in Him we have any ability to love and obey Him. Trying to do it by our own efforts is futile. God delights in showing goodness to us, but without Jesus, we cannot delight in Him or in His Law.

PRAY: Lord God, this is why I worship You and delight in Your Son. Without Him, my only delight is sin but because of Him, I can delight in You and Your righteousness and commands, Your people and in their well-being. Jesus changes everything.

“When I run, I feel His Pleasure”

 

Eric Liddell was a British Olympic Gold Medalist runner, Scottish rugby union international player, and Christian missionary well known for saying the title of this post. John Piper, a noted theologian, pastor and teacher wrote a book called, “The Pleasures of God.” What does the Bible say about DELIGHTS in the heart of the Almighty?

The Hebrew and Greek word have the same meaning; delight or pleasure mean “to take a high degree of pleasure or mental satisfaction in.” When the Bible speaks of pleasing God, it is rather astonishing that a human being can give delight to their Creator. We tend to expect this to work the other way around yet there are many verses that express how God delights in blessing those who delight in Him:

The Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers, when you obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. (Deuteronomy 30:9–10)

He is not interested in rituals or our strengths and abilities, only in the worship and service we do in His strength and in obedience to His voice.

And Samuel said, “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams. (1 Samuel 15:22)

His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man, but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love. (Psalm 147:10–11)

He is delighted with blameless ways, faithfulness and humility in us. He also delights to do His will, such as choosing people to belong to Him and serve Him. Further, He delights in blessing us with abundant lives, particularly as we love and obey Him with all our hearts:

Let those who delight in my righteousness shout for joy and be glad and say evermore, “Great is the Lord, who delights in the welfare of his servant!” (Psalm 35:27)

God’s most obvious delight is having a personal relationship with us. He says that in both OT and NT and revealed it in the most obvious way by sending Jesus to make that relationship possible. He also expressed it many other ways:

You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate, but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her, and your land Married; for the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married. For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you. (Isaiah 62:3–5)

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. (Zephaniah 3:17)

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. I know that nothing I do is delightful in the sight of God apart from the Son of God who died for me and lives in me. I can say with the prophet, “Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of Your inheritance? You do not retain Your anger forever, because You delight in steadfast love.” (Micah 7:18) God delights in whatever matches His will and rightfully so — only His will is perfection; only He is perfection and the worthy source of joy. He is pleased to bless us because this is who He is. He is pleased when I do righteously because righteousness is worthy of His pleasure. He works in me to want that kind of life and to live it. But most amazing is that when this God who lives in me and walks with me is pleased, He allows me to feel His pleasure. As Eric Liddell said and Romans 7:22 says, “For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being” because for me, walking with Jesus results in experiencing a joy that is beyond description.