A moment for reflection: Psalm 37 verse 4 by Morag Cameron Psalm 37 v 4 ‘Delight yourselves in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.’ Firstly what does ‘delight’ mean as it is not a word we use often today. The word “delight” rather than the tamer “happiness” evokes a sense of joy and even childlike or innocent wonder. It’s also a verb, indicating an active choice to take delight, rather than a passive feeling or reaction. This verse is an invitation to centre our lives on a deep and joyful relationship have God. To ‘delight yourself in the Lord’ means to find joy in our connection with the Source of all; making Him the focal point of our desires. When we position our hearts with God’s will, our desires naturally transform. They become aligned with His purpose and plan for our lives. As we seek God’s guidance and find joy in His presence our desires begin to mirror His desires for us. He will give you the desires of your heart’ is a promise that as we draw near to God He responds with blessings that line up with our transformational desires. It’s a reminder when we prioritise our relationship with the Lord our trust and most fulfilling aspirations are fulfilled. “Where your treasure is, there your heart (delight) shall also be” (Matt. 6:21). When we turn our eyes away from this world and fix them on God and His intention for us, only then are we even capable of delighting in Him. If God came to us today and asked “what does your heart desire?”, what would our answer be? Obviously HE already knows the answer, but would we know? Would it be something frivolous and physical? If only we were more like Solomon, who asked God for lots of wisdom, a request God granted and then added on top of that a multitude of physical blessings. |
In some ways we can read Psalm. 37:4 as two sides of a coin, telling us to delight in Him and that He will delight in us. God delights when His people listen to His voice, obey His commands, when they turn away from the pulls of this world and take care of others. James 1:27 states "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. " He wants to give us good things as we read in Psalm 84:11 "The Lord gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly." As we journey through life this verse can be our guiding light. We must seek delight in God, nurture our relationship with Him and in doing so find our hearts desires fulfilled in ways that exceeded our wildest dreams as He lovingly shapes our hearts according to His divine plan. “I experience absolute joy in Your presence; You always give me sheer delight” (Psalm 16:11.) Hymn: Prayer Heavenly Father, we come before you today, not to ask for anything but humbly giving thanks for all You have done for us. Thank you for the grace you give us every day of our life. We understand we don’t deserve what we receive from You; You provide everything in advance. We are weak and fail so often, but Your grace is endless. We thank You also for our family and friends, for the health we enjoy and the opportunities we have been given. We can give thanks for the beauty of nature and the peace and joy that comes living in communion with God. Amen. |