Delight in the Lord

Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalms 37:4 (NASB) There are several things about "delight" in this passage:

1. It is not passive - it takes intentional action to accomplish this. It doesn't come naturally. It doesn't just happen. It takes effort.
2. It's not really optional. This is an imperative statement - it's what we're supposed to do. Period. The consequence of obedience is that we will receive the desires of our hearts, but that doesn't mean that we can just say that getting those desires isn't worth the effort. We are still told to delight in the Lord.
3. It's not limited to good circumstances. In this Psalm, David is talking about what we should do in the midst of plots and prosperity of evil men. I can't imagine that being good circumstances!

Today it would be a whole lot easier to be frustrated with everything around me than to delight in the Lord. The truth is that there are always things to be frustrated with, and when I look for them they multiply. They are always there, but sometimes I ignore them and other times I let them get the best of me. Today, so far, I've let them get the best of me. So, I'm being disobedient. Ouch. I don't like it put that way. I'd rather sugar-coat it and say I've just had a frustrating morning. Can't we leave it at that? But, God says no. God says to delight in Himself. He never really says we're allowed to be frustrated. So, even while the kids are screaming at each other and I don't feel all that well, I must delight in Him. Even while I'm behind on my day's chores and won't have a chance to catch up tonight, I must delight in Him. It's not a goal. It's not an attempt. It's not even a challenge. It's a command. It's not optional because it's what God has instructed me to do. He is Sovereign Lord and Master and I must obey. Period.