DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD

 

     DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD, AND HE WILL 

GIVE YOU THE DESIRES OF YOUR HEART - PSALM 37:4. 

     I have read that verse several times and I have certainly tried my best to live by it. I look at it as a reminder of how important delighting yourself in the Lord is. The word "Delight" means "a high degree of gratification or pleasure." I'm sure for yourself there are several things that give you pleasure. I think of members of my own family. My grandfather, my Dad's Dad found pleasure whenever he went fishing. He had an assortment of fishing supplies in his basement and garage. My Dad found pleasure when he was in the basement doing woodwork. He built several pieces of furniture. My sister has a kitchen table he made. His workshop had had several power tools, and he had cigar boxes in his cabinet filled with nails and screws. He loved doing woodworking. He also loved his vegetable garden. It gave him pleasure when he walked into the house with fresh tomatoes, zucchini, squash and string beans. Unfortunately, some of us find pleasure with things that are not good for you. Alcohol and illegal drugs are abused every day bringing temporary pleasure to so many. Abusing these things cause major addiction and so many lives being destroyed. I thank God I have never had this problem. I hear from sources that the effects of drugs will give pleasure to you personally. However, it is short lived and like I said before, it does result in major problems that affect your life and the lives of others, including your family.

     The above verse from Psalm 37:4 has always been misquoted. So many people look at the second part of that verse and ignore the first part. "The Bible says God will give me the desires of my heart, bless God!", many say. Unfortunately, this is where we get that ugly "Name it and claim it" or the "Blab it and grab it" theology that, in my opinion is not biblical. You hear, "God doesn't want you to be poor, He doesn't want you to struggle financially. He will give you the desires of your heart." Or how about "You deserve a Cadillac or a Mercedes Benz. It will be in your driveway if you claim it, brother!" I do agree that God does give you the best, but does his "best" have to be a brand-new sports car or a lot of money in your bank account? Whatever happened to reflecting on the first part of Psalm 37:4?  "Delight yourself in the Lord...    

     "Delighting yourself in the Lord" is where it is at. I have learned I need to stop treating God like my "Magical Genie", but to treat him like "My Savior." He is NOT this great big Santa Claus up in the sky who will give me whatever I want. He will give "meet my needs according to his riches in glory." (Philippians 4:19). I have also learned that "Delight" does not come from what I do for the Lord in ministry, but from my heart. I must must must do what Psalm 37:4 says first. Delighting myself in Him! I need to take delight in Him and put my focus on pleasing Him in every way. I have to stop being a spoiled child complaining that "I never get what I want." Instead, I need to find pleasure in my savior. I need to thank Him for what I do have and stop complaining about what I don't have. If God said yes to every one of my prayer wants, I'm sure I would probably go nuts and end up in a room at Pilgrim State (which is a Psych Ward in New York). I take delight in my savior, Jesus Christ. I know He knows what's best for me. When I do that, THEN "he will give me the desires of my heart." This life is not a sprint, but a marathon. I am still learning, even at 62! 😀

HAVE A BLESSED WEEK AND THANKS FOR READING MY BLOG!