What is Your Delight
John D. Telgren


“I was just delighted to meet you!” “That ice cream sundae was just delightful!” “She is my delight!”

Do you ever use the word “delight” or “delightful?” What does it mean? A dictionary definition of this word is, “to take extreme satisfaction in, or to take pleasure in."

What do you delight in? Maybe it is a collection you have been working on. It could be your wardrobe. Maybe it is your achievements at your job. It could be your children, or your spouse. It could even be your lawn or garden.

I remember when I still had my 67 Mustang. I faithfully washed and waxed it. I kept the engine in good running condition. I loved to drive downtown on the weekend with the windows rolled down and play Billy Joel tapes with my friends. We would stop and get a shake or an ice cream cone at the Kwik Pic, which was the local hang out. That was delightful to me. This may sound strange, but I used to have periodic nightmares that my car had gotten a dent in it. I would wake up and breath a sigh of relief when I would realize that it was only a dream.

It is strange that I had so much emotionally invested in something like a car. But what having that car could give me was very, very limited. It wasn’t until I left home that I began to realize this. Psalm 37:4 says,

“Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart.”

Many people are well aware of the second half of this verse. Some want the Lord to give them the desire of their heart. But God is not into giving out cool cars, cool clothes, and other such self-centered things. He knows how to give good gifts to his children.

He will grant the desires of our heart if we first delight ourselves in Him. What does that mean? It means to take pleasure in, or to take extreme satisfaction in God. Not in the things that he may grant to us, but in Himself. The context of this passage offers more explanation.

“Trust in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it (Ps 37:3-5).”

So, delighting in the Lord means to trust Him, to be faithful to Him, and to commit our way to Him. That means doing things His way and not our way. Paul puts it another way,

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice (Phil 4:4)!”

The source of our joy is to be “in the Lord always.” When that happens, the peace of God will protect our hearts and our minds. If our delight is in the Lord, then nothing can take that away. God is a rewarded of those who diligently seek Him. Our work for Him is not in vain. He will give you the desires of your heart in due time if your delight is in Him.