God invites us to delight in Him. Along with this wonderful pursuit is a promise to give us the desires of our hearts! Psalm 37:4 (ESV) "Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart."
Godly desires will be within God's will and we can know that we are praying according to His will.
DELIGHT -- great pleasure in something.
Wrong kind of:
Showy display Esther 6:6-11
Physical strength Psalm 147:10
Abominations Isaiah 66:3
Sacrifices Psalm 51:16; Isaiah 1:11
Right kind of:
God's will Psalm 40:8
God's commandments Psalm 112:1
God's goodness Nehemiah 9:25
Lord Himself Isaiah 58:14
Psalm 40:8 (ESV)
"I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart."
Psalm 112:1 (ESV)
Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in His commandments!
Nehemiah 9:25 (ESV)
And they captured fortified cities and a rich land, and took possession of houses full of all good things, cisterns already hewn, vineyards, olive orchards and fruit trees in abundance. So they ate and were filled and became fat and delighted themselves in your great goodness.
Isaiah 58:14 (ESV)
Then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
1. What is something you "delight" in?
2. What does it mean to "delight in the Lord?"
3. How can delighting in God help change my perspective or attitude in a trial that I am going through?
4. How can you tell if someone delights in something or someone?
Determine to live by kingdom priorities
Matthew 6:33
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
A. As we seek the kingdom of God first and His righteousness, He adds everything we need.
B. Often we worry and try to take care of everything without seeking the Lord first.
1. What have I been putting "first" in my life?
2. Have there been other agenda's besides the Lord's kingdom that I have been pursuing? (or delighting in?)
3. What adjustments will I make this week to change my priorities to match God's priorities?
In Psalm 73, Asaph needed a change in perspective from "earthly" to "heavenly." Many times we can get off track a bit when our focus needs readjusting to the Lord. He concludes as the NIV study notes state: "that nothing in heaven or on earth is more desirable than God." Please read Psalm 73 as your devotional for this study today.