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When we try to describe God, we often use words like “Almighty”, “All Powerful”, All Knowing”. I have never heard anyone describe God as All-Delightsome, at least not until about a week ago when I was reading Thomas a Kempis and his book The Imitation of Christ, written in the 15th century. When I read that word, I was, well, delighted. What a fun, unique way to say “happy”. Merriam-Webster defines delight as a high degree of gratification or pleasure: joy. Extreme satisfaction. This same dictionary defines delightsome as very pleasing: delightful. Dictionary.com says that the word is from the 1200’s and meant a high degree of pleasure or satisfaction.
Thomas a Kempis wrote, “For thou, O Lord, my God, art best above all things; Thou only art the Most High, Thou only the Almighty, Thou only the All-sufficient, and the Fulness of all things; Thou only the All-delightsome and the All-comforting.”
I love thinking about God as All-delightsome. He is the ultimate source of gratification, pleasure, joy and satisfaction. Of course Thomas a Kempis didn’t originate the idea that God is delightful, or that he is a source of delight and that he can be delighted by his people. The Bible says:
Happy is the one whose … delight is in the instruction of the Lord. Psalm 1:1,2
Praise the Lord. Blessed are those who fear the Lord,
who find great delight in his commands. Psalm 112:1
The Lord detests lying lips,
but he delights in people who are trustworthy. Proverbs 18:2
For the Lord takes delight in his people;
he crowns the humble with victory. Psalm 149:4
Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. Micah 7:18
The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17
I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness. Isaiah 61:10
Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4
Imagine that. God takes delight in people like you and me. That means he finds great pleasure and satisfaction in those of us who are humble and trustworthy. There are a multitude of reasons for us to delight in God, but I never thought that God would delight in us!
Thomas a Kempis found God’s rest particularly delightsome. He writes in this same meditation, “my heart cannot truly rest nor be entirely content, except it rest in Thee, and go beyond all gifts and every creature.”
His final thoughts reflect his happiness at God’s delightsomeness, “Excellent are Thy works, true are Thy judgments, and by Thy providence are things governed. Therefore praise and glory be unto Thee, O Wisdom of the Father, let my mouth and my soul and all created things praise and bless Thee together.”
Great advice for all of us. Have a delightsome day!
God loves us and wants us to be happy. This is the great truth that Paul wants his readers to know and take to heart, and he prays that this reality will grip all believers in Christ in the book we know as Ephesians. He specifically prays that followers of Jesus may have power to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. I teach a Bible class at a local drug and rehabilitation center in Tlacolula, Mexico, and we studied this passage on Monday. I suspect that many of them had trouble believing that God could love them when they consider the terrible things that they had done under the influence of drugs and alcohol, the people that they hurt and the relationships that were destroyed. The apostle Paul could understand these doubts. Before he experienced the incredible love of God, he hated Jesus, wanted to kill his followers and destroy the church. So it didn't make any sense that God could love him. He is right. It doesn't make sense that God could love any of us. Scripture says that we are all rebels, enemies and sinners against God. That is probably why Paul writes in verse 19 about this love that surpasses knowledge. It is impossible for us to wrap our minds around the fact that God loves us. And not just a little bit. His love for us is incredibly wide and long. Unbelievably high and deep. It will take us a lifetime to begin to “grasp” God's great love for us. In this passage (3:14-21), Paul mentions the word “power” three times. It is only with the power of God, through the Spirits indwelling of our hearts, that we can appreciate his love for us and be “filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” Imagine that, you and me, filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now that should make us happy!
God loves us and wants us to be happy. This is King David’s message to the people in Psalm 36. He writes in verse 5:
Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
And in verse 7:
How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
Verse 10:
Continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
and your righteousness to the upright of heart.
This tremendous love of God makes people happy. They feast on the abundance of God’s house. They drink from the river of God’s delights. They enjoy the fountain of life, and God’s light enables them to see the light (8,9).
For some people the greatest source of joy comes from taking refuge in the shadow of God’s wings. I think that is especially true for the girls and boys here at the children’s home in Oaxaca, Mexico. Many of the children who live here come from troubled, dysfunctional environments, where many times only one parent or a relative was around, and that “care giver” was many times abusive either emotionally, physically or sexually, and the children could run, but not hide. They had no place of refuge.
And then they come to FFHM’s home for needy children and find refuge; a place where they are safe and secure. Instead of being frightened of biological parents they are delighted with loving house parents and staff members who make sure that they are well cared for emotionally, physically, and most importantly, spiritually. They are introduced to our marvelous God who loves them, died for them, and is now on his throne watching over them and wants them to live lives of peace and joy.
They say that Christians are the hands and feet of God. That is true, but when I look around at my brothers and sisters in Christ, here at the mission, I see that we are also the wings of God. The wings of God where the children of mankind can take refuge.
To Enjoy God 