The Lord's Great Delight

by Suzie Johnson

"And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'" ~ Matthew 3:17

Most, if not all of us reading this blog, long to please the Lord in some way. I know I do. Fortunately, since I tend to fail a lot, I’m covered by His grace.

courtesy of thebiblerevival.com

I have this long standing image of the Lord holding out His arms, face beaming, as He says words similar to those same ones He spoke over Jesus when he was baptized in the Jordan River, "You are my child, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."

The very thought fills my entire being with a warm glow and I feel incredibly loved.

I don’t think I’ve ever shared this with anyone, not even my sister. But somehow she must have known because she sent me a card this week with an unfamiliar scripture on the front. I may have read it before and stored it in my subconscious, but I can’t be sure. I do wonder though, if this is where I came by my initial image of God being pleased with me.

"The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing." ~ Zephaniah 3:17

courtesy of thebiblerevival.com 

I never imagined God taking delight in me. Pleased, yes, but taking that concept deeper to Him taking great delight in me – it’s a new thought for me. Even more so, the image of Him singing over me with joy, gives me a sense of gladness so deep down in my soul, I can barely express what I’m feeling.

Music has always drawn me close to the Lord. This fact and the timing of my sister choosing a card with this scripture has reminded me that God’s timing is perfection. That she sent me this scripture at this particular time – God must have been sitting on her shoulder while she looked at cards and nudged her toward this one. My desire to give my best in whatever I do has been renewed because of it. (Thank you, Pam!)

I now have a burning desire to attain the utmost in this scripture – the part where not only is God delighting in me, He’s singing over me with joy!

What images do you hold onto of God?
Did they come from scriptures you read, or from something you were taught?

Suzie Johnson’s debut novel, No Substitute, a contemporary inspirational novel, will be released by White Rose Press later this year. She is a member of ACFW, RWA, and is the cancer registrar at her local hospital. The mother of a wonderful young man, who makes her proud every day, Suzie lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and naughty little cat. Although the beaches there are rocky instead of sandy, lined with Madrona trees instead of Palm trees, and the surf is much too cold for wading, it is still the perfect spot for writing inspirational fiction. You can visit her blog, Suzie's Writing Place at http://suzieswritingplace.blogspot.com/.