We can uncover a completely new life when we fully live knowing that God delights in us. His love for us is limitless, and knowing that changes everything.

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What Do You Delight In?

Lindsey Johnson

When you get up in the morning and face a new day, what do you say to yourself in hopes for the day? When the day is done, what can you say was a result of you having lived that day?

I believe that what we find ourselves thinking about/ being consumed by first thing in the morning and before bed at night holds a strong correlation with what we delight most in.

I also find that my first thoughts in the morning often dictate the course of my day. If I allow myself to delight in worldly things (or to be brought down by it when it does not come through- which is often the case), my day will be consumed by distraction and convoluted thinking. Conversely, when I wake and am immediately consumed by God’s goodness simply in considering me worthy of another breath, joy is a natural response.

As humans, we have the unique capacity to decide where we allow our affections to be expressed- to choose our delights. Unlike the majority of nature, we do not function strictly off of instinct, but off of conscious decision. We have the ability to introspect and change based on what we consider priority.

This means that what we consciously choose to delight in is a direct indication of the quality of our very selves.

As a man, I believe that you can tell a lot about the excellency of a woman’s soul by what she delights in. If she is eager to gossip and her face lights up with the news of the day, she is not someone I want to choose to spend my time with. If her face-to-face interactions are compromised because she takes far too great of pleasure in her virtual image, I will choose not to pursue face-to-face interaction with her any longer.

Let me tell you ladies, as a Christian man, NOTHING is more attractive than a woman who delights herself in the Lord, period.

She is radiant, passionate, not happy- but joyful (as in she is not a product of what HAPPENS- hence happiness; but is sustained by an inexhaustible source of joy that does not waiver with circumstance, thus joyful), empathetic, purposeful, contagious, kind, genuine, and caring.  She knows who she is, she knows who Jesus is, and people learn more about Jesus by being in her presence.

She is all of the above because she chooses to be- because she chooses to know and delight in her Maker.

When you choose to make God your soul’s greatest delight, everything seems pale in comparison.

Theologian Thomas Chalmers called this transition, “The expulsive power of a new affection.” This is a fancy way for saying that when you delight in God, this new affection you have for Him (and Him a million times over for you) will expel any lesser feelings toward worldly pleasures.

• That job you wanted no longer defines you.
• That relationship that you devoted everything to is no longer your chief source of joy.
• Your money isn’t something that makes you cautious, but something that enables you to bless others.

This is freedom. Giving the desires of your heart to God, making Him your one great passion and delight, and trusting Him for the results.

But here’s where it gets super crazy…. give God those things, and He will give them back to you in perfection. Perfection that only He could bring to fruition- that all your trying harder could never bring about.

See Jesus didn’t come to enslave us, but to give us abundant, full, joyful life (John 10:10).

He wants to give you that thing that you deeply desire in your heart. But He will not allow it to be exalted over Him. Give to Him and you’ll get the fullness of life, that good thing that He put in your heart in the first place, and, best of all, you’ll get God Himself.

Want proof? Here it is:

“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” – Psalm 37:4

Simple.

• Want to date/marry an awesome Christian man? Delight yourself in Jesus.
• Want to be a successful evangelist? Delight yourself in Jesus.
• Want to do something- ANYTHING meaningful? Delight yourself in Jesus.
• Want to be the salt of the earth? Delight yourself in Jesus.

I love the word “delight” because that’s How God describes us- we are His great delight. He rejoices over us with singing (Zephaniah 3:17).

Singing! What!? When was the last time you delighted in something so much that you sang about it? Well God’s singing about you in Heaven, even now as I write, and I imagine it’s a pretty incredible song.

So, ask yourself:

What do you delight in with God-sized pleasure?

The answer should be God Himself.

So…

As women who stand clothed in Christ’s beauty and salvation, who God fully knows and yet fully loves, whose days are ordained for hope and a future, who are capable of introspective thinking and deeply desire to be transformed more into the likeness of Christ and the women He would have you be- you have a responsibility…

Choose daily to make God your first and greatest delight. It will change everything.