DELIGHTING IN THE LORD 1

  Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
^{Psalm 37:4}

 

Psalm 37:4 is a particular treasure for every believer. Great wonders can be mined, refined and crafted like jewelry to adorn the hearts of believers from this verse! I would like to show you a little of what can be drawn from it.

THE DECISION OF DELIGHT

The first word here both in Hebrew and English is the imperative, “delight.” A fact about joy and delight is given us here by the One who created you and knows your heart best. Delight is a choice. You can and must decide to delight in the Lord.

THE DESIRE OF DELIGHT

Someone wrote a negative review of my book, JOY[2] on Amazon.com. He said several things and then concluded that “some of it just didn’t make sense.” I may be too sensitive. No one likes a negative review. But I also think he was reacting to the fact that I said (and the Bible teaches) that joy does not come from pleasure, luxury and ease. We are tempted to desire many things in life. But this verse calls us to redirect our desires to delight in the Lord.

THE DELIVERANCE OF DELIGHT

I have found that I need God to deliver me from temptations and addictions to the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes and the pride of life. I need the moving of God’s Spirit in my life to turn my perverted heart to His delight.

What I have shared here comes from my praying and thinking about this verse. But there is more in it. Let me encourage you to take some time to meditate on these words and see what God reveals to you. It would thrill me if some of you commented on it. Next week I will share more that is in this verse. And your meditation will give you deeper understanding of the verse and even of my musings on it.

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^[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. 2001 (Ps 37:4). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

[2] http://www.amazon.com/Joy-David-Young/product-reviews/1477665579/ref=sr_cr_hist_all?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1