"Delight in the Lord"

Passage: Isaiah 61:10

"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 righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with jewels."

The Way it Should Be...

Delight. The very word brings to mind all manner of warm fuzzies, and idealisms. I think of all of the wonderful things that have ever happened in my life - and "delight" is written all over them! And yet, as nice as all that sounds, it is all too often NOT the way things are for members of the Body of Christ.

The Way it Is...

So many times, I see members of the Body of Christ struggling to make sense of their lives. Whether in the area of finances, relationships, or personal struggles with sin... the apsect of victory that one typically associates with Christianity is by-and-large missing. And it's too bad, because it need not be that way.

Now, don't get me wrong. I am not suggesting that I have a lock on the concept of 100% victory, 100% of the time. I, too, fall prey to the day-to-day grind, and many times find myself in desperate need of quality time with the Lord in order to get through. The fact that I am able to recognize that position, and am willing to do something about it, is what this devotional is all about!

A Win-Win Situation

To "delight" in something is to rejoice... to revel in the glory of the circumstance. And what better circumstance is there to rejoice in, than that of the Salvation of our Lord?? Let's look at another Scripture, perhaps my favorite verse of all time! It is Psalm 37:4, which reads...

"Delight thyself also in the Lord: and He shall give the the desires of thy heart".

In the light of all that God has done for us... His death, His resurrection, and His great Salvation, surely it is not a burden to delight ourselves in Him! And when we do... we are promised the "desires of our heart"! Talk about a win-win situation - it doesn't get much better than this! And it's a PROMISE from the Creator of the universe!

Practical Application

To know that something exists, is only the first step. We must acknowledge not only the existence of these promises, but then apply them to our lives. In order to do that, we must dissect our daily lives, and take an honest look at points in time when we should stop complaining, and start praising God for all that He has done in our lives. Paul said that we are to "...rejoice in the Lord always, and again, I say rejoice"! This is not vain repetition, but God's way of activating the promises we find in the Bible.

When you find yourself down, and struggling - no matter what the circumstance - start to lift up the name of Jesus, and worship Him in Spirit and Truth! You will be amazed at how the Word comes alive through your praises (it's true: He inhabits the praises of His people!), and the joy of the Lord becomes your strength! Go ahead, give it a try! And when you do, remember to drop me an e-mail, sharing about how the Lord came through for you! He WILL!!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you so much for all the promises we find in Your Word! Lord, help us to be the Body of Christ that You want us to be... full of victory and joy! Convict us with Your Holy Spirit when we need to be rejoicing, and we forget to do it. And Lord, be glorified with our praise! In Jesus' name, Amen!!