A Delighted Daughter

Ever questioned what it truly means to delight in the Lord? Yeah, me too. 

Many times, you will hear Psalm 37:4 recited, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart”, but who has a picture and or idea of what it looks and feels like to delight in someone or something? 

In the context of delighting ourselves in the Lord, I believe it is a noun and a verb. It’s something that you do and something that you are. To me, it is to please someone or something greatly and to carry yourself in a way that is pleasurable to others. It is what you do which makes you who you are. 

To be honest, I didn’t have a clear picture or example until recently. Over the past 3 months I have been drawn to pay closer attention to the relationship between my daughter and her father, my husband.  I always thought that their relationship was admirable because of my own personal relationship with my earthly father. However, I felt the Lord tugging me to go deeper and to see more through their relationship… so I did. 

These are some things I was able to observe (stay with me):

1. After a certain amount of time, my daughter will ask about her father. 

2. If her father comes home, she screams his name with the biggest smile on her face and, sometimes, she will attempt to open the door for him.

3. Whatever her father asks of her, she’s obedient.

4. She knows where she can find him.

5. She enjoys what her father enjoys (music, genuine people, etc.).

6. Rest comes easy when she’s in the presence of her father.

7. When she’s in trouble, she knows who to call on.

Additionally, I would like to hit on the Father aspect too…

Many of you know that TJ and I parent very differently and I was super worried that we would clash raising children together. Boy was I wrong. I worried for no reason. Now, I can see why it’s so easy for my daughter to delight in him.

These are some of the many reasons:

1. He knows what it takes to satisfy her. 

2. He can change her crying into dancing or laughter. 

3. He is gentle and kind. 

4. His response to her never changes.

5. His presence is known.

6. His “no” is accompanied by a better way, solution, and reason.

7. Her discomfort and cry are important to him.

As I studied this scripture Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart”, I was stuck at the initial command - “delight yourself in the Lord”. Stuck, in a sense that I needed more clarity on what is, how will I, when should I, and why is this important. It is a blessing that God uses people to shed light on what is asked of us. It was my daughter and husband for me. Their connection helped me strengthen my own relationship with my Heavenly father and it was such a simple lesson. Delight in Him— she has taught me to see God as the most admirable person and to delight in his love, care, and protection.  It is her actions of taking great pleasure in her father, to please him or to be his pleasure that allowed me to see the importance delighting myself in the Lord. The idea behind all of this is that when we truly rejoice or “delight” in the eternal things of God, our desires will begin to parallel with His will and we will never go unfulfilled—ask my daughter. And, because of her, I have solid points on what a delighted daughter entails. 

A delighted daughter is one who:

• Knows when she’s out of the presence of her Father and desires to return back to a safe place.

• Enjoys the presence of her Father and her Father only. 

• Knows how to invite her Father into her space. 

• Works and lives to please God.

• Enjoys what her Father likes.

• Knows where to find rest. 

• Does what is asked from an obedient heart.

• Knows where her help comes from.

In conclusion, when you are delighted in someone or something, YOU trust them.  You trust their will and way. As a daughter, you are not REACTIVE with emotions (mouthy, complaining, crying victim); you simply RESPOND with actions (obedience, prayer, doing His will), because, ultimately, all of this pleases YOUR FATHER. When we find ourselves in a delightful place with God, He then gives us the desires of our hearts. It is my guess that, if we are struggling to get the things that our hearts desire, we may need to check who we’re delighting in besides the Lord. To help with that, I have some applicable questions:

Outside of the Lord, what do you find pleasure in? Is it more or less than what you give to God? How will or how do you take pleasure in God? How does your life please Him? What makes you pleasurable? Are you reactive or responsive to your Father? What must you do to get to a place where you respond to God rather than react?