Day 28
My Hope Pleases God
The Lord delights in those who fear him,
who put their hope in his unfailing love. [Psalm 147:11]
If my kids were to write a job description for me, I believe that the first bullet-point would read, “Dad will give me whatever I want, whenever I want!” Of course if I actually did give them everything they wanted, whenever they wanted it, none of them would be alive.
As their father, I know what they really need. I don’t let our youngest son toddle across the street to go the park. I don’t let our 4-year-old daughter “do the cooking like Mama does” and grab the pot of boiling water off the stove. And our oldest son, who’s in junior high — well, I believe that speaks for itself! If I allowed my children to do whatever they wanted, the results would be disastrous.
The real job description should read, “Dad will take care of me whenever I need it, because he loves me.” I love being the go-to guy when things go wrong in their lives. When my child gets a scraped knee, it fills me with joy to console them, clean them up, and — like the psalmist writes — bind up their wounds.
In the moments they really believe this to be true, and show it — those times they lean on me and hug me with total belief in my love for them — I am delighted. My heart sings for joy when they fall asleep secure in my arms or even simply look at me with relaxed trust.
I believe this blueprint of good fatherhood comes from our Father in Heaven: He delights in those who put their hope in His unfailing love.
When we crawl into his lap in complete hope and trust, He is blessed.
Just think: There is something you can do to bring delight to the God of the Universe! And as verse 10 implies, it’s not a spectacular deed or showy accomplishment. It’s simple hope in who He is and His unfailing love for you — that every moment of every day, God loves you more than you can even imagine! Bring delight to your Father today!
Question to Consider
What distracts me from seeing God as a Father who loves me?
Prayer
Lord, I put my hope in Your unfailing love for me!
