Delighting in the Lord – Terry Nightingale
“Take delight in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
“The LORD makes firm the steps
of the one who delights in him” (Psalms 37: 4, 23)
Like much of the sayings in The Book of Proverbs, David has written a psalm contrasting the fate of the wicked with the righteous. In his black and white view of the world (compared to today), the righteous will shine like the dawn, enjoying peace and prosperity, while the wicked, though temporarily successful in their schemes, will eventually lose their power and perish (or “go up in smoke” v 20).
One of his reasons for composing the psalm is simply to say, “do not fret” (he says it 3 times). Do not be overly anxious when bad people continue to be bad people – God will hold them accountable.
Life, is of course, more complicated than that and God’s people are called to respond actively, not passively, to injustice in the world, the needs of the poor and destructive ripples that can flow from compromised leaders and flawed human beings.
But for those who seek to honour God with their lives, David’s psalm is timeless. Trust in the Lord; commit your way to Him; be patient. David then ends his psalm with a promise:
“The salvation of the righteous comes from the LORD;
he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
The LORD helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him” Ps 37: 39 – 40.
How might we take refuge in the Lord? One way is by delighting in Him.
The Westminster catechism tells us that “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever”. We exist to worship Him – yes! To give glory and honour to Him – absolutely! But to enjoy Him too. To delight in Him. God wants us to find joy in Him.
When we stop and find space in the day to shut out our worries and stresses, we might reflect on how much the Lord has done for us. How He has changed us, transformed us from the person we once were. We can marvel at the fact that He includes us in His plans, even though we don’t deserve it. We can remember specific times of encouragement, a word that spoke to us or a remarkable answer to prayer.
We can be grateful for what we have. Material things. Money, the ability to earn money but more importantly, people. Those the Lord has brought into our lives and made precious to us. And the relationship with have with Him – our Father in heaven. Always present, always sovereign, always patient. Always kind.
So much to enjoy. And we haven’t even started to talk about the wonder of His creation, which we can delight in as we walk through that park or along that beach, side-by-side with the One who made it.
The promises of David’s psalm are “firm steps” and the desires of our heart for those who delight in the Lord.
To be honest, I think to have a heart that daily delights in our maker is reward enough, but it is comforting to know that while we are simply enjoying Him, He is quietly planning good steps ahead for us.
