Are You Delighted in the Lord?

By: Lauren Speares

“Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” Psalm 37:4

Psalm 37:4 is a verse I have heard preached on and quoted by great men of God my entire life. I have even quoted this verse to myself and others as encouragement. When I think of this verse, I immediately think, Okay, if I’m happy serving the Lord, then He will give me everything I desire. Although that is not completely wrong, I have learned there is far more to delighting in the Lord than happiness.

I once heard a preacher say, “Happiness is based on the happenings around us.” If the happenings in my life are causing me to be unhappy, does that mean I am unhappy serving the Lord? The Lord is not circumstantial in His faithfulness toward us, so I believe He deserves that same faithfulness from us.

According to Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, the definition of delight is “a high degree of pleasure, or satisfaction of mind; joy.” If everything in our lives right now never changed, would we still be satisfied in Christ alone?

There have been things in my life that I wanted God to change and situations I wanted Him to handle my way. As ashamed as I am to admit it, when things did not go my way, I became unhappy. Just because the Lord does not answer our prayers the way we want Him to, or on our timeline, does not make Him any less good. The Lord is good because of His character and who He is—not simply because of what He does for us.

We live in a world addicted to instant gratification. When I looked up the meaning of the term instant gratification, I found this definition: “the desire for things now rather than waiting for a potentially more substantial reward later.” Is that not how many Christians—including myself—often live today?

I would hate to get ahead of the Lord and miss a greater reward. After all, “He hath made every thing beautiful in his time…” (Ecclesiastes 3:11). Wait patiently for that desire, because “…when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.” (Proverbs 13:12).

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Psalm 40:8: “I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.” What if the things we desire are not God’s will? Would we still delight in Him?

Paul was given a thorn in the flesh that he wanted the Lord to take away, but when the Lord did not grant that desire, Paul did not stop serving Him. Instead, he gloried in his infirmities (2 Corinthians 12:7–9). That is certainly much easier said than done, but God has a perfect and detailed plan for every individual.

Sometimes God’s will is not what we would choose for ourselves, but the very things we think would be best for us may actually be the things that destroy us. I am thankful that, in His mercy, the Lord does not always answer our prayers the way we want Him to because He sees what we cannot.

I want to encourage you to remain content and thankful for the things the Lord has already blessed you with because “…godliness with contentment is great gain.” (1 Timothy 6:6). If the Lord cannot trust us to be thankful and satisfied with what He has already given us, why would He trust us with more?

Rest in the promise that He “…is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think…” (Ephesians 3:20). Thank Him for all He has already done, and thank Him ahead of time for all He will do in spite of you!

I am not sure what the greatest desire of your heart may be, but if God never grants you that desire, would you still be able to say, “I am complete in Christ alone”?

Webster’s 1828 Dictionary also states that “delight is a more permanent pleasure than joy, and not dependent on sudden excitement.” Do not let your delight in serving the Lord be based on temporary emotions or circumstances that bring “sudden excitement.” Serve Him for who He is, not for what you can get out of it.

I pray that the Lord grants each of you the desires of your heart according to His will and that you remain delighted in serving Him. When the devil comes by your way to place negative thoughts in your mind, cast down those imaginations (2 Corinthians 10:5) and fix your focus on the One who has saved you and always has your best interest in mind. He alone is worthy!