Delight in the Lord Jesus Christ

I have not written in a long time, because life was (and still is) difficult. I felt like I was drowning in the storms of financial shortcomings and other problems. I was unhappy with God, because I felt like I was fasting and praying, but things only got worse. My prayers became complaints, and my thanksgiving turned to whining about how Jesus was ignoring me. But then Jesus spoke to me last night in His still, small voice. Jesus Christ told me that I felt the way I did because I did not delight in the Lord, I did not delight in Him.

The Revelation

It’s interesting how this revelation happened. I am a professional writer and editor, so I was editing an article on sugar addiction. I then realized that my sweet tooth, my own sugar addiction was coming back. I know that only happens when my emotions are unstable and I try to sugar-high my way through life. The Holy Spirit started to gently lead me through instances where I focused on my troubles rather than on the Lord Jesus. He showed me how I ignored His blessings, to instead worry about what I didn’t have. The Lord showed me the intents of my heart – and it was not pretty.

I was listening to gospel music on YouTube and at that moment I heard Big Daddy Weave’s Overwhelmed. At that moment, I heard a line of the song that said: “I delight myself in You.” Right there, the Holy Spirit of God said to me: “You feel the way you do because you do not delight yourself in me. You do not delight yourself in the Lord.”

The tears began to flow because I knew that it was true. I cried very hard all throughout last night. I repented of focusing on everything but Jesus Christ. It was a true come-to-Jesus situation all night and into today. But, now I feel refreshed and I feel alive again.

Walking on Water

In the midst of my tears of repentance, the Lord reminded me of the story of Peter.¹ It’s the story of Peter getting out of the security of the boat in the middle of the storm. Peter started out well; he started from a position of absolute faith in Jesus that he could walk on water. But, then Peter shifted his gaze from Jesus to look on the waves. Those waves brought fear into Peter’s heart. Then Peter began to sink, and he was drowning in the storm.

In a similar way, I took my eyes from Jesus Christ. I began to feel like I had to do everything to make life work for me. The fear of my situation and my inability to fix my problems overwhelmed me. So I was drowning for a number of months under the weight of it all. I felt like I was underwater, because I was sluggish and I was not myself. To pray, read the Word and to worship God felt like a daily fight. I was struggling hard, but I didn’t realize that my focus had shifted from Jesus Christ.

The Rescue

However, I am grateful that Jesus never left me in that state. I am happy that He was patient to keep talking to me until I was able to hear Him. I thank God that He led me back to Him. Like Peter, I cried out to the Lord to save me. I am happy that He heard my cry and rescued me last night.

The Process of Restoration

I do not claim that all is perfectly well after one night of crying out to the Lord. That would not be honest. The process of restoration takes time. While my physical circumstances have not changed as yet, my spiritual man is changing. I can feel the change on the inside, as my Father tells me to cast all my cares on Him.² So now, I will keep my focus on Jesus Christ, because He is in control. When the enemy seeks to bring fear and anxiety upon me, I will retaliate with 2 Timothy 1:7:

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

I will keep reminding myself that I will not fear and I will not doubt. I will rest in the Lord Jesus Christ. Last night the Spirit of God was also revealing some future events to me. Twice, He had me open my Bible to Jeremiah 32:27:

Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh:
Is there anything too hard for me?

So I will focus on Jesus Christ in the midst of my storms, and so should you. Let us follow the instructions in Psalm 37:4:

Delight thyself also in the Lord:
and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

When we delight in the Lord, His will becomes our will. It’s only then that He will give us the desires of our hearts. Why? Because then our hearts’ desires would have become united with His own heart.

Always Delight in the Lord

It’s easy to say that we will delight in the Lord. If we are to delight in the Lord always, then we must abide in His presence always. I encourage us not to let the pressures of life pull us away from Him. We must keep our daily communion or conversation with our Heavenly Father. We must read and meditate on His Word, rejoice ever more in Him, pray without ceasing, and live in gratitude to Jesus Christ.³

I will leave you with the lyrics from Big Daddy Weave’s Overwhelmed song:

I delight myself in You
Captivated by Your beauty
I’m overwhelmed, I’m overwhelmed by You
God, I run into Your arms
Unashamed because of mercy
I’m overwhelmed, I’m overwhelmed by You.

I recommend that you listen to this song and let it minister to your heart. The Lord Jesus surely used it to minister to my own heart.

May Jesus’ blessings, peace and wisdom be upon us all,
Sophia.

1. Please read Matthew 14:22-33.
2. 1 Peter 5:7 and Psalm 55:22.
3. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.