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Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4
On occasion I used to officiate sporting events. Yep, I was one of those dreaded guys in stripped shirts. Generally speaking you have to have a pretty solid view of yourself to don the stripes and whistle. You go into each event realizing that at least half of the people at the event could very well hate you before you leave.
An old joke among officials is that if you leave the event with EVERYONE mad at you, you have done a good job! You simply won’t make everyone happy in that situation. In fact, you may be praised one minute for making ‘a good call’ and lambasted the next for being a complete idiot.
The people in stripes, for the most part, enter into each event with the goal of keeping the event fair for everyone. Regardless of what we think, the vast majority of the time they have no ‘ax to grind’ as they enter the arena. However, they are human and will miss calls, make bad calls and like any of us, just plain blow the call. Expect it. They are human.
So what does all this have to do with ‘taking delight in the Lord?’ Too often, whether we want to admit it or not, we often see God as a ‘super-powered referee’. We expect that because He is God, and He is perfect, and He loves us and promises to take care of us, that the ‘call’ will always go our way. Life shows us that simply isn’t the case. Life is hard. Life deals us bad ‘cards’. Finances fail, relationships fail, health fails, we grow old. We make mistakes, we sin, we are abused.
The Psalmist encourages us to take delight in THE LORD, not necessarily in the things He allows to happen in our lives. The main difference between God and the people wearing the strips is that God can see ahead, is perfect and has our best interest in mind.
Taking delight in Him requires that we grow in relationship with Him, trust Him in every situation, and acknowledge that even when things don’t go our way, our Heavenly Father always knows what is best.
It’s an interesting phenomenon but people who take delight in the Lord can enjoy peace and contentment even in the toughest times. Don’t judge God on the things we see around us. Judge Him on who He is. His loves for you supersedes the tough times of life.
PRAYER: Father God. I confess to you that there are times when I don’t agree with the way things are going in my life. Some of my prayers seem unanswered. Others are answered but not in the way I asked. I get angry with you. I lose hope. When that happens the joy of relationship with You is tarnished. Forgive me for wanting my own way. Help me to trust You even during the times when You don’t answer me the way I want. In Jesus name, Amen.
This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. 2 Corinthians 9:12
“The best way to get people to praise God is to bless them. Even works with your enemies!” These were the words of a friend of mine I’ll call Ben. Ben had a casual friend we’ll call Steve several years earlier. This ‘friend’ and Ben had a falling out and, unfortunately, even though both parties were Christ-followers, the relationship was never the same. One day, shortly after the falling out, Ben received some unexpected money.
“I went to bed that night wondering how to spend the money,” Ben told me. “It wasn’t a large amount, but I wanted to spend it wisely. The Lord brought one name to my mind over and over again,” Ben smiled as he told the story. “I just couldn’t get Steve out of mind. I knew he needed some work done on his car. I also knew that if I tried to give him any money it would be rejected or misunderstood. So, I decided to send him an anonymous letter in the mail with the cash I knew would repair his car.”
Ben went on to tell how, several days later Steve was praising God to everyone he saw because of how the Lord had blessed him. “I wanted to come forward so bad!” Ben still smiled to tell the story, “but we were both blessed by the gift and that’s the important thing.”
How do you get people to praise God? By blessing them! It may not be money. It may be shoveling their sidewalk after a snowstorm, or mowing their grass while they are on vacation, or throwing out the guidelines on tipping at the restaurant (even if the service is terrible!).
It’s not always easy to bless someone else with our service. We can be abused or taken advantage of, misunderstood or criticized. It’s especially hard when the ones God calls us to serve are our ‘enemies’ or hate us. During the times when serving others is hard remember that our service to other people is really service to God.
Serving others is a three-fold blessing. We are blessed in our giving, those we serve are blessed by our service and God is blessed by their praise! When you get the opportunity to serve others, remember that your service never affects just one person. Our Heavenly Father loves to hear the praise of His people and serving others always leads to our Father being praised as well.
PRAYER: Awesome Heavenly Father. You have blessed me in so many ways. I have life. I have Jesus. I have the promise of eternity with You. Empower me by your Holy Spirit to reach out to those around me and bless them so that they in turn will give you the praise you so richly deserve. Help me remember that it isn’t my praise I seek but Yours. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7
I love big, juicy, red raspberries. One day I decided I would plant my very own raspberry patch. I took some apple seeds from an apple I’d just eaten and went into my yard. I found a place in my yard that would be nice and convenient for me, right under a large oak tree and close to the house. I threw the seeds down on the ground and went into the house. I made sure there was just enough rain and sunshine for my plants. A few days latter the seeds had begun to grow several nice raspberry plants and in a few weeks I went out to pick my own bucket of fresh, juicy red raspberries.
If you know anything about gardening you know that the story above is pure foolishness. You can’t grow raspberries from apple seeds; you can’t just throw seeds on hard, uncultivated ground and expect them to grow; and most importantly of all, you can’t control the rain or the sunshine.
In order to have a healthy crop of whatever I want to plant there are some basic rules that need to be followed. Rule number one: plant the right kind of seed. If I want raspberries, plant raspberry seeds! Rule number two: plant my seeds in ground that is prepared for them. Rule number three: wait patiently. Plants don’t mature overnight and fruit can take years to develop. Rule number four: All my preparing, planting and patience will do no good without divine help. God is the one that controls the rain and the sunshine.
The same four rules apply to life. If we want to see positive things in our lives we need to plant positive seeds. Planting seeds of understanding and compassion will eventually produce love. Planting seeds of forgiveness and acceptance will eventually produce trust. Planting seeds of humility will eventually produce respect. Planting seeds of discipline and accountability will eventually produce self-confidence.
Planting positive seeds not only produces good fruit, it keeps disease from attacking us. When we plant positive seeds anger, bitterness, loneliness and hate will have less of an impact on us.
Producing fruit isn’t painless. Imagine the pain the soil must feel when we churn it up and rip out all the dead roots and rocks to make it healthy. Imagine the loneliness of the seed as it lays in the darkness of the ground waiting for growth to begin. Imagine the frustration of the young plant as it anxiously awaits the first buds the signal the beginning of fruitful growth.
None of this will happen of course without rule number four. Healthy fruit in our lives begins with God and ends with God. He is the one that needs to be involved in showing us all the ugly stuff that needs to be removed from our lives for fruit to flourish. He is the one that gives us wisdom and patience in knowing where to plant, when to plant and how to plant positive seeds in the ones around us. He alone can bring fruit in the lives of others and us.
PRAYER: Father God. I want to make a difference in my world. I want to be fruitful in my own life as well as producing fruit in the lives of others. I ask that you would show me the things in my own life that need to be removed in order to produce fruit. Give me patience with others when they don’t ‘grow’ at the rate I was hoping for. Protect as I patiently cultivate the relationships in my life so that they may produce healthy fruit as well. In Jesus name, Amen.
See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me. Isaiah 49:16
People get tattoos for a variety of reasons. Some get simple tattoos hidden away in discreet places. Others get large tattoos that are easily seen by everyone they come in contact with.
Tattoos are usually some sort of statement by the person wearing the tattoo. The tattoo is a reminder to that person of another person, place or thing that has great meaning and significance in their lives. There are other times when people get a tattoo for ‘less than well-thought out reasons’. That’s unfortunate because tattoos are painful to receive and almost impossible to completely remove without surgery.
Why all this talk of tattoos? Because God has a tattoo! It’s in a place where He will always remember it. It is a constant reminder throughout His day of something that is extremely precious to Him. Right there on His hand is a tattoo with my name on it!
What we call ‘tattoos’ aren’t really new. People in the mid-east would often engrave things on their hands or fingers to remind them of something very dear to them. It was a permanent reminder of their city, a loved one or some event in their lives.
God says, through the prophet Isaiah, that God has engraved us in the palms of His hands. It was the way He expressed to his people that fact that even though they may be in exile or going through some struggle, their plight was ever before them. They were never forgotten, never unnoticed, never beyond sight of Him.
The same is true today. You may be going through things that are unbearable. You may feel totally forgotten by God. You may be living a lie that says you aren’t good enough for God or that He doesn’t love you. Nothing is further from the truth.
Every time God looks at his hand, there is your name and a reminder to Him of all you mean to him. Just like a tattoo today, the tattoo God bears with your name on it put him in great pain. But that’s okay. To God you are worth it.
One more thing about tattoos. They can never be fully removed. In the same way, nothing you can do will remove your name from God’s hand. You are always and forever in His sight.
As you go through the trials and struggles of the day, as the journey of life leads you into places you never thought you’d be. Remember this: the Creator/God of the universe has your name firmly tattooed in the palm of His hand. He will never forget what you are going through.
PRAYER: Father God. I thank you for your great, undying love for me. I’ve made so many mistakes. There are so many times when I have ignored you or been angry with you. So many times when I feel completely abandoned by you. Thank you for your promise never to forget me or the pain I’m in. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.
Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” Instantly the leprosy disappeared, and the man was healed. Mark 1:41-42 (NLT)
His body was racked with pain. His disease had progressed to the point where his fingers were nothing but nubs. The stench of rotting flesh hovered around him like a cloud. He was repulsive to look at and even those who loved him the most could no longer stand to be near him. Leprosy, at this time, was considered a sure sign of sin and, as a result, even the religious community rejected him. He was alone, rejected and without hope.
Then Jesus came. We aren’t told what made him stop at the man’s voice. We only know that when Jesus looked on him He was moved with compassion, not disgust. The man had nothing to offer Jesus. There was no chance of him ‘cleaning up his act’ for God. Yet in his misery Jesus was moved with compassion.
Nothing has changed. Today Jesus still looks at those of us who are hopeless, sinful and rebellious human beings. We have nothing to offer Him. No matter how much we try to be good, we end up being bad. No matter how hard we try to live a good life, things still seem to fall apart.
Our leprosy may not be physical. It may be financial or relational or emotional. We may suffer from the consequences of our own actions, or the results of other people who mean to do us harm.
How you got where you are isn’t important and getting yourself out isn’t possible. There are no membership requirements. Like the leper, Jesus looks at you with compassion. He doesn’t just see your plight, He is moved to compassion. That’s active, not passive. All you have to do is ask.
Jesus loves you. He isn’t interested in what you can bring to the table. He’s only interested in seeing you healed and restored.
PRAYER: Dear Jesus, I look at my life and confess to you that I am not worthy of the healing you have offered me. There are so many times I still try to do things on my own. So many times I do what I want when I know it’s wrong. So many times I make stupid mistakes. Please forgive me and give me your healing touch. I claim the promise that in You, no matter what I’ve done in the past, I can be clean. Amen
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 