What a simple word – DELIGHT. It has been wonderful this week to just “sit” with. Have you ever delighted in a flower, a bee, a hummingbird, or a sunset? How do you feel as you sit still and enjoy what you are seeing? Does it bring you joy? encouragement? hope? peace? Are you able to “sit still” and “delight” in it?

At a recent retreat, I was introduced to Joni Eareckson Tada’s book, The Practice of the Presence of Jesus. She has clips from Brother Lawrance’s, The Practice of the Presence of God. Here’s what I read:

My King, … He converses and delights Himself with me incessantly, in a thousand and a thousand ways, and treats me in all respects as His favorite. ~ Brother Lawrence, p. 34

Delight means – “a feeling of joy or satisfaction; something that gives great pleasure, excitement, and happiness.”

I encourage you, as I was challenged, to just sit and ponder HOW God delights in you!? Does He delight in you as His created child? Read that quote again, realize God doesn’t just delight in you for a moment, but He delights in you incessantly!

There are many verses in the Bible that remind us how special we are to God that He delights in us. Here are a few:

For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty Savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With His love He will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs. ~ Zephaniah 3:17 NLT

The LORD delights in those who fear Him, who put their HOPE in His unfailing, HESED, love. ~ Psalm 147:11 NIV

He led me to a place of safety; He rescued me, because He delighted in me. ~ Psalm 18:19 NLT

What makes God’s delighting in us so special is when we delight in Him as well. God delights in our delight of Him.

Take delight in the LORD, and He He will give you your heart’s desires. ~ Psalm 37:4 NLT

I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For He has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of His righteousness. ~ Isaiah 61:10a

Some questions to ponder and journal:

• How do you feel when you think of God delighting in you? As you sit still, can you imagine His arms around you, or Him talking to you face to face, or both of you sitting side-by-side watching a sunset just “being still” together?
• What does it look like that God delights in you?
• How do you delight in God?
• Are you struggling to delight in God? If so, I encourage you to just sit still with Him and ask Him to show you His presence in your life. This takes time. It takes surrendering your self. It takes opening up and trusting that God is who He says He is.

I pray you will find time to be filled with wonder that the Creator of the universe takes time to delight in you! He is an amazing God.

God’s abundant blessings to you, Faye