June 2nd, 2025
By: Amanda Allums
God knows what we need and want even before we ask. In fact, God knows what we need and want even when we don’t know. Psalm 37:4 says “Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.” God doesn’t tell us to let Him know the desires of our heart so He can give them to us. He tells us what to do in order to receive the desires of our heart. This tells me that He already knows what we desire and wants to give them to us if we will simply live for Him.
What does “delight yourself in the Lord” mean? To me, it simply means being thankful and trying to see things through the lens of Jesus so we are viewing the ups and downs of life through scripture. There will be days when we face trials, temptation, and opposition. There will also be days when we are on the mountaintop, feeling blessed, and nothing can steal our joy. No matter what kind of day we are having, God is still worthy to be praised and there is something we can thank God for.
Have you ever had a day when everything seemed to go wrong and you could not help but recognize how chaotic it all is and all you can do is laugh about it? I have had those days, and when I saw the situation for what it was and I recognized that there is absolutely nothing I can do to fix it and only God can fix it then I was able to shake the dust off my feet, laugh in the face of the devil, and move on. Giving our concerns and troubles to God and leaving them in His hands isn’t always easy, but it is always the best thing we can do in order to be able to continue to delight ourselves in the Lord and not allow our circumstances to steal our joy.
Joy has more to do with remaining in the presence of Jesus than with avoiding problems and struggles in our lives. We can have peace and joy in our lives no matter what is going on around us because life circumstances don’t dictate those things. We dictate what we allow to affect us both positively and negatively. Paul learned this and we can too. He says in Philippians 4:11-13: “Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
I have learned that I have no choice but to rely on God for everything because I know I am nothing without Him. Everything I am and everything my family and I have is from Him. We have much to be thankful for. We have had some very tough years in ministry, with family, and personally, but if we had allowed those tough times to dictate how we felt, viewed the world, and even viewed our calling in ministry, then we would have never experienced the good times and blessings that followed. God shaped us in those trials, and even when we created our own chaos, God allowed us to learn and grow from it. That only happened because we continued to follow Him, serve Him, and listen to His voice.
Don’t give up if you are in a trial. Make room for the Holy Spirit to minister to you through your trials. Ask God to remove any scales from your eyes so you can view your situation through the lens of God, and continue to delight yourself in the Lord even when your situation looks like you should be depressed. Don’t accept defeat and don’t allow the devil to get a foothold while you are weak. Allow God to be your strength, joy, and peace. He is always near. You just need to keep your eyes and heart open to see Him working. If you are reading this and you need encouragement, I encourage you to read Romans chapter 8. I love to confuse the devil and praise God even in my trials.
If everything seems to be going right in your life right now, praise God for that too! Keep thanking Him and use this time to grow and use your strength to help others. Be an encouragement to someone, because one day you may need encouragement too. Remember, the more you pour in, the more you can pour out. God doesn’t bless us to keep it to ourselves, and God doesn’t allow trials for us to stay the same. We can grow in the valley and while we are on the mountaintop. No matter where you find yourself today, find a way to delight yourself in the Lord!
God knows what we need and want even before we ask. In fact, God knows what we need and want even when we don’t know. Psalm 37:4 says “Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.” God doesn’t tell us to let Him know the desires of our heart so He can give them to us. He tells us what to do in order to receive the desires of our heart. This tells me that He already knows what we desire and wants to give them to us if we will simply live for Him.
What does “delight yourself in the Lord” mean? To me, it simply means being thankful and trying to see things through the lens of Jesus so we are viewing the ups and downs of life through scripture. There will be days when we face trials, temptation, and opposition. There will also be days when we are on the mountaintop, feeling blessed, and nothing can steal our joy. No matter what kind of day we are having, God is still worthy to be praised and there is something we can thank God for.
Have you ever had a day when everything seemed to go wrong and you could not help but recognize how chaotic it all is and all you can do is laugh about it? I have had those days, and when I saw the situation for what it was and I recognized that there is absolutely nothing I can do to fix it and only God can fix it then I was able to shake the dust off my feet, laugh in the face of the devil, and move on. Giving our concerns and troubles to God and leaving them in His hands isn’t always easy, but it is always the best thing we can do in order to be able to continue to delight ourselves in the Lord and not allow our circumstances to steal our joy.
Joy has more to do with remaining in the presence of Jesus than with avoiding problems and struggles in our lives. We can have peace and joy in our lives no matter what is going on around us because life circumstances don’t dictate those things. We dictate what we allow to affect us both positively and negatively. Paul learned this and we can too. He says in Philippians 4:11-13: “Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
I have learned that I have no choice but to rely on God for everything because I know I am nothing without Him. Everything I am and everything my family and I have is from Him. We have much to be thankful for. We have had some very tough years in ministry, with family, and personally, but if we had allowed those tough times to dictate how we felt, viewed the world, and even viewed our calling in ministry, then we would have never experienced the good times and blessings that followed. God shaped us in those trials, and even when we created our own chaos, God allowed us to learn and grow from it. That only happened because we continued to follow Him, serve Him, and listen to His voice.
Don’t give up if you are in a trial. Make room for the Holy Spirit to minister to you through your trials. Ask God to remove any scales from your eyes so you can view your situation through the lens of God, and continue to delight yourself in the Lord even when your situation looks like you should be depressed. Don’t accept defeat and don’t allow the devil to get a foothold while you are weak. Allow God to be your strength, joy, and peace. He is always near. You just need to keep your eyes and heart open to see Him working. If you are reading this and you need encouragement, I encourage you to read Romans chapter 8. I love to confuse the devil and praise God even in my trials.
If everything seems to be going right in your life right now, praise God for that too! Keep thanking Him and use this time to grow and use your strength to help others. Be an encouragement to someone, because one day you may need encouragement too. Remember, the more you pour in, the more you can pour out. God doesn’t bless us to keep it to ourselves, and God doesn’t allow trials for us to stay the same. We can grow in the valley and while we are on the mountaintop. No matter where you find yourself today, find a way to delight yourself in the Lord!
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