Finding Faith in His Delight
Tucked between the bed and nightstand, I braced myself for what lay ahead in my morning devotions. Would there be more doubts and struggles or would I find the rest and peace I longed for? The darkness had engulfed me for months but the Lord was re-revealing Himself to me, Scripture by Scripture; whisper by whisper.
I clung to the words I already knew He had infused into my weary spirit. Each morning I read those words I had written on 3×5 index cards, inscribing them on my heart. He had made it clear to me that Faith was not a feeling. It was a choice on my part to believe His word. A choice to stand on it, to grasp it as my life on the days when my feelings were reeling, far from the joy and confidence I had possessed when the Lord had first captured my heart.
I was making the choice to believe. I knew it was life to my very bones, my heart, my lungs. In the quiet, I went through my prayerful routine. Praise for the Lord, read Scripture and allow a devotional to teach me, picture the Lord in my mind and listen for His voice. In those few moments of silence, words flicked across my mind. Words that seemed to be the Lord speaking to me but I knew it couldn’t be the Lord. Because the words on that screen in my mind said, “I am delighted in you.”
In my knowledge of Scripture, we, as His followers, were to delight ourselves in Him. No where did it say that He delights in us. Or at least that was what I thought.
Then I could sense a prompting to look through Scripture just in case there was a passage that alluded to the Lord finding pleasure in us. Opening my Bible’s concordance, I found a verse that literally made me gasp and sent chills through me.
“The Lord delights in the way of the man whose steps he has made firm;” Psalm 37:23 NIV
To know that I had heard the voice of the Lord in my stillness before Him bolstered my faith. I had both His Word to grasp through times of whirring emotions. And I had the joy of having experienced Him personally, once again in my life.
Since then, I have found other Scriptures that reassure me of the Lord’s great delight in His children. In times of doubt, fear, or guilt, His love and joy in us can soothe and quiet our anxious hearts.
Which of His words have brought you knowledge that he delights in you?
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Many thanks,
Sherry, The Design Gives Back Team
I feel what you wrote….His word…His whisper gives me so much courage….even when it feels so dark….Hope your day today is the best
What a comfort it is to have confirmation that we have heard rightly.
Janis, this is beautiful and spoke deeply to my should today. It’s a hard day.
Thank you so much for these encouraging words.
Hugs
~a
Janis,
You will never know how much this touched my heart today. I am feeling so much discouragement the last few days over some circumstances in my life. Not the least of which is wondering if I am making any difference for the Lord in the lives of others. And here, today, I have heard the soothing truth – giving me new perspective – HE delights in me.
Thank you, thank you…tears in my eyes.
GOD BLESS!
Lovely photo and words. Have a delightful day knowing your joy from God makes God joyful too. Thanks for the reminder!
Thank you for sharing a very personal moment between you and the Lord. I almost, almost, welcome those sleepless nights and a hurting heart, because I know his presence will draw me near and his whispers will soothe me as we cuddle together. His direct words that pierce the anxiety and fear are the best!
Your comments have touched my heart. I am overjoyed to see how much the Lord is revealing His delight in each of you–to each of you.
Because of the response, I will do a second post on Wednesday that will cover more on the Lord delighting in us. It will focus more on Zephaniah 3:17.
From My Heart to Yours,
Janis
Lovely post! Thanks for the reminder!
You bring such heartwarming joy to us with each new post, Janis. Thank you for being transparent and teachable so that we might learn.
Blessings!
Pam at http://www.2encourage.blogspot.com
Isn’t that so wonderful, that the God who made the mountains and the seas, delights in US?? Just amazing!
Thank you, as always . Words of encouragement!
Jan
Simply beautifully captured shot & the thoughts…lovely!
Wonderful post! Your photo is amazing! Thank you for sharing your heart and for your visit. Wishing you a delightful day in Him.
Blessings,
Sandi
Very amazing and cool! At first as I read your commentary I thought, well, I have read that He does delight in us. Neat that He showed you the verses. It truly is amazing and yet how very much He does delight in His children. Praise to our Almighty Father! Love, Karen
You have brought delight to me by the words you have written here. I’m so glad the Lord delights in his children. How blessed we are to be given the privilege of being counted among them.
Thank you for sharing.
Blessings,
Charlotte
Beautiful words. I am thankful that I know I can go to Him on those troubled nights and receive the comfort from Him only.