Delight

Funny how sometimes an idea or a word just keeps popping up in random places.
In the past little while, a word keeps coming up, over and over and over again. This morning was the last straw in some ways; I pretty much threw down the note I’d been reading and said, “Enough! I get it. But now what??”

That word?  Delight.

Google tells me that the word can be both a verb and a noun.  As a verb, it means “to please (someone) greatly” and as a noun, it means “great pleasure”

Not really a “throw down and stomp away” word, I know.

But hang in there for a sec and let me explain. Here’s where I’ve seen that word …

Two days ago, the idea of delight, though not explicitly stated as such, showed up in Psalm 16:11:

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Okay, not bad. Actually kind of lovely if you think about it.

Yesterday, it was Psalm 37:4:

Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Another lovely verse, attached with a promise. Only this time, there’s an action associated with it.  This verse is a little tougher to comprehend, and one that has me scratching my head every now and again, because I struggle with this idea of delighting in God. Honestly, He is this omnipresent yet invisible Being that, like it or not, tends to fade into the background, crowded out by worldly things.  It isn’t easy to believe in that which I cannot see.

Last night, it was Isaiah 55:1-3:

“Come, everyone who thirsts,

    come to the waters;

and he who has no money,

    come, buy and eat!

Come, buy wine and milk

    without money and without price.

Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,

    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,

    and delight yourselves in rich food.

Incline your ear, and come to me;

    hear, that your soul may live;

and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,

    my steadfast, sure love for David.”

Those verses were an amazing encouragement to me, reminding me that sometimes my worries and my stressors have to do with situations that, in the grand scheme of things, don’t matter.

But that little word “delight” popped up near the end of verse 2, suggesting I look to God for delight and satisfaction.  And again … head scratching.

Today, though, was the icing on the cake: Psalm 1:2. But I’ll back up a verse to give a bit more context:

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.

Delighting in God’s law?  What? How?

Now do you understand my reaction?  I mean, who exactly enjoys laws (other than lawyers, that is)? I'm grateful they - the laws - exist, but come on.  Delighting in them seems a bit of a stretch.

God is trying to tell me something, that much I know.  I get it.  But at the time I was definitely wondering “What gives, God? Stop telling me what I need to do and tell me how to do it!”

Well … I’ve had no serious revelations since then … but I did take a quick look at one commentary, and at this website, I discovered two interesting points.

1) The law of the Lord is more than just the first five books of the Bible. It’s a term that means the Bible as a whole.  Which is relieving because I don’t want to spend time thinking about how I need to purify myself at certain times of the month, or going into seclusion because of an unsightly rash.  I can – and should – think about Jesus, about Paul’s letters, and the journey of the Israelites.

2) Delighting in something doesn’t mean being constantly happy or joyful and gushing about it. Because everyone who knows me probably knows that that isn’t me. At all.  But I like how the website put it… “If a person delights in something, you don’t have to beg them to do it or to like it. They will do it all by themselves. You can measure your delight for the word of God by how much you hunger for it.”  This makes sense; after all, a person usually doesn't do something if they don't like it or find some sort of pleasure in it.

Wait, before you correct me, let me re-phrase that. There are plenty of things a person does that they don't like. You'd be hard-pressed to find someone who actually enjoyed childbirth (or so I'm told).  Getting teeth pulled, needles injected, taking Buckley's "taste awful but it works" medicine, using an outhouse are all things that people do without pleasure.

And there are plenty of people out there who approach God without pleasure. Myself included sometimes.

If I’m honest with myself – and with you – I’m not one who hungers for God’s word. Sometimes I just want to read it to get through it.  I’m hoping I can just pick it up and God will speak to me. And then I say, “That’s nice.” and get on with my day, thinking that those other things are more of a priority.  There's no pleasure here.

That’s totally not the way it works.  It’s not as if I can just pick up my Bible, spin around three times, throw salt over my shoulder, sit down and open my Bible randomly and God will speak.

And I can’t just put in an order like I would at a restaurant. “Hey God. I’d like some answers to a, b and c. Then bring the bill. Thanks.”

It’s about relationship. It’s about getting to know God. spending time with Him because of who He is, not what He can do.  Once I realize that, once I approach Him differently, that is where the pleasure comes from.

Goodness, that sounds a lot like my previous post, doesn’t it?  I guess it shows how stubborn I am and how I need to hear the same thing a number of different ways before it really sinks in.

Or maybe it’s just me going deeper in the thought process, actually spending some time thinking and reflecting.  And remembering rather than immediately forgetting.

Or maybe it’s God being gracious, knowing full well that I need constant reminders, and as such poking and prodding me – gently, of course – to think on such things.