Eve of Fasting: Delighted in a Delightful God

Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Pslam 37:4

I went to bed on Tuesday last week repeating this verse to myself. I had to. I realized that I was dreading the day ahead. Dreading! Here I am with the opportunity to draw near to God in prayer and fasting, and I was wishing the day didn't have to come. When I did a quick heart check, I realized that that is not how it should be. It's not even how I wanted or still now want it to be. I decided that I want to be a person who longs to be in fellowship with God, who eagerly anticipates what I can learn and hear from Him on a specifically dedicated day (or any day). I want to be a person who enjoys my God! As Christian author John Piper says, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him."

I prayed that I could wake up and not merely endure the day, but enjoy it. "God," I prayed, "Help me to wake up looking forward to the day, anticipating the ways you will move and work through an act of obedience to you, however small it may be. Please help me to find pleasure in seeking after You." And God, in His usual way, showed up!...not so much in the way I was expecting, but he showed up nonetheless, and I could not help but cry out in thanks.

It became my prayer that our faithful prayer warriors in fasting for Adam would delight in God, that these Wednesdays would not be a day of dread but that they would be full of excited anticipation.

And just how can we delight in God other than by praying for it? Consider this description of a faithful person: "But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night." (Psalm 1:2) This means delighting in the words of the Holy Bible. Yes, delighting in them! Not neglecting them, not ridiculing them, not even grudgingly yet obediently reading them, but rather, delighting in them.

Tonight, let's open our Bibles to Psalm 119. If you don't have a Bible handy, click here to read the text. (Yes, it's a little long, but it's so good!) The theme of this passage is that God's Word is true and wonderful. Pay attention to how many times the psalmist speaks of delighting in, following, remembering, learning, longing for, obeying, believing in, meditating on, or loving the words of God.

As we unite in prayer for the complete healing of Adam, let us also delight in God and rejoice in the day that He has given us to be faithful children and fervent prayer warriors on Adam's behalf. And remember, even while life is uncertain and always changing, sometimes even seeming to "fall apart," God's word and God's love remains unchanging.