“Delight yourself in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Psalm 37:4 ESV
We have two types of ice-cream connoisseurs in our family. On one hand, we have the scarfers. Does’t matter the flavor, consistency or type…..they’re just happy to have ice cream, and happier still to stuff it in their face. Ice cream is ice cream, and they’re often found with the spoon in their mouth, straight out of the carton before dessert has even been called for. Then, there’s another type….lets call them the savorers. These are the people who are excited to partake even before the scoops hit the bowl. They choose flavors, combinations, and sometimes they even plan the toppings and mix-ins ready to take their ice cream experiences to the next level. The savorers are simply delighted to partake of the creamy goodness that is forever unique to ice cream. While some look at ice cream as an after dinner treat, they look at it as a lifestyle to be enjoyed. Most often, they’re the ones who all scream for ice cream.
The two connoisseurs lead very different lives.
One (the scarfers) shove what’s meant to be enjoyed down their throat. Without realizing it, they’ve consumed an exorbitant amount of dessert, barely tasting what should have been a delight. The second (the savorers) are happy to take the scenic route, enjoying what has been given for what it is- a gift meant to be savored.
I think we might be talking about more than ice cream now.
I’ve noticed lately, that there’s a similar approach to how we look at, or enjoy our time with the Lord. The scarfers tend to handle time with Jesus like they do their ice cream: shoveled in, and then they’re on their way. (Seriously friends…..I am soooooo guilty of this!) Time with Jesus can become a duty, an obligation, something we punch our time clock for, forgetting the delight that has been set before us.
Or…we can learn to savor.
We can slow down, enjoy, bask in his sweet presence and remind ourselves what has been gifted to us is better than ice cream.
When I was younger in my faith, I looked at the above passage in a very different light. I’ve thought if I delight myself in God, he would give me whatever I want. As I’ve grown, I don’t think that mindset fully embraces what the passage means. I think delighting in God is an invitation to slow down, enjoy, and savor him. As our hearts align with him, so do our desires. Simply put, we delight in him, and he gives us what we should desire. The trick isn’t just putting in the time, but using our time with him to delight in him….it’s an invitation as much as it’s a discipline to enter into something holy, beautiful and good.
The more we delight in him, the more our desires come in alignment with him. The more we enjoy God, the more we are satisfied with him. The only way we can do this is simple- spend time savoring him. As with any wonderful experience (or discipline), there’s the opportunity to scarf, or savor. Which type of connoisseur will you be?
So much love,
Joy