Delight And Rest

I've just returned from a day of solitude - 24 hours of silence and being alone with the Lord - and I have to say that it was sweet and wonderful. I've mentioned on here, oh, I don't know, about a million times lately that I've been overwhelmed with living at the speed of life the past few months, and it was definitely time for a break. Honestly, no vacation in the world could have been more refreshing for my soul!

The Lord allowed me a lot of sweet rest and sleep, and then He had a specific word for me: "Delight in me. Enjoy me!" Up until yesterday I had always thought that "delighting in the Lord" was a suggestion. You know, like, "Try taking a warm bath to relax...it works for me!" But He very clearly showed me in His word that delighting in Him and enjoying Him is just as much of a command as "do good" or "turn from evil".

The scripture He had me focus the most on was Psalm 37. He definitely had some peace to speak into my heart concerning economy-type things through these verses, which maybe I'll get a chance to write about soon. If you read Psalm 37, you might see that it can be fairly easily broken down into two categories: commands and promises. Even all the stuff in there about what happens to wicked people can really be chalked up on the "promises" side of the board. And when you do that with the whole psalm, you'll very quickly see that "delight" and "enjoy" show up as commands.

Now we would never, ever think of "turning from evil" as a strong suggestion that we could simply take or leave at our own whim, would we? I mean, that doesn't even seem like a remote point of negotiation in the kingdom of our Lord, does it? Well what if He is just as serious about us delighting in Him? I'm beginning to think that He is.

How amazing is our God that He would command us to stop and enjoy Him. To take a break and breathe a deep, calming breath of His presence. I'd love for you to stop right now and think of something that you really, really enjoy - something that is your special escape from the reality of life. You got that picture in your head? For me it's a warm, candle-lit bath and chocolate truffles (shallow, I know - but it works for me...). As much joy and satisfaction and release that moment or thing or experience gives you - that is what God is commanding you to experience with Him. Amazing thought, isn't it?

I'm really looking forward to figuring out how to make enjoying the Lord a routine part of my spiritual discipline, and I'm excited to see how it might look! But most of all, I'm thankful for a God and Father who delights in me and wants me to enjoy and delight in Him so much that He commands it. What an amazing God we serve!