What God Desires Most

Psalm 147:10-11 – His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man; but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love. (RSV)

For some time now, I have found that I am extremely hard on myself, when it comes to my walk with Christ, and rightly so. I hold myself to a higher standard than I do other people, and I often feel as if the slightest miscue on my part will result in grave punishment. While this is good, in the sense that it makes me strive harder and harder to be more like Christ, it also often leads to unneeded depression or anxiety when I stumble or fall, or when I feel like I failed to measure up to this lofty standard.

I came across today's verses a while back during my quiet time, and they immediately comforted my heart and spirit. I suddenly realized that some of the things that I held myself accountable for were not necessarily the things that God was looking for in my life. These verses gave me a blessed reassurance that what pleases God is that I fear and reverence Him.

God's pleasure is not in the strength of a horse, nor in the legs of a man. He does not take pleasure in the things that we can accomplish in this world, or in what our stature is in society. Those living during the Psalmist's time relied heavily upon the strength of a horse. When they failed to have the strength or ability to accomplish certain tasks, they brought in the horses to give them strength. We often do the same thing when our own resources do not seem to be enough to get us through. We turn to computers, the Internet, television, friends… the list goes on and on. And perhaps there are times when we are successful with these means. But what really brings pleasure to God, and what He desires most, is that we always turn to Him first. We can lean as heavily as we like upon Him, and He will never fail us. It may turn out that God does indeed point us to another resource, but at least we have started in the right place.

Fear God and hope in Him. When it comes right down to it, that is what God wants from us, and that is really not asking very much.

Prayer: Father, we give You praise and reverence. We bow humbly before You and place our hope and trust in You and You alone. Help us, as we walk through each day, to lean continually upon Your steadfast love and assurance, that we might bring pleasure to You. Amen.