It delights the heart of God to be delighted in. What does that mean?
As a missionary, I believe I got a very small glimpse into what God’s life is like. Almost everywhere we went, people wanted things from us. They wanted money for food or school or because someone was sick, or any other number of reasons. They wanted us to listen as they told their stories of heartbreak or abuse or everyday struggles. They wanted us to help them do this or that, and to pray for them to receive a myriad of things. They wanted our time and our picture to be able to say that they have white friends.
And we were glad to give them those things when we could. They saw we had abundance (even though we only had a backpack), and many of them had HUGE needs. Asking was not wrong or bad.
But then there were those who just wanted to get to know us, or of even greater delight to us – to get to know our God.
I can’t imagine the enormous amounts of requests that God receives, and as a Father He does delight in giving good gifts to His children. But His greatest secret is that His best gift – the one so seldom asked for – is Himself. God’s heart bursts open with joy when we do this!
So ask Him, for the first time or the millionth time – “God, can I have more of You? Will You show me who You are? Let me enjoy You face-to-face, resting and being still in Your presence. I want to be Your intimate friend, just because I like You, just because I know You are good.”
And then He smiles and says, “YES!”
