Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37:4
Blaise Pascal, a 17th Century philosopher, made this claim:
"All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and of others avoiding
it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views. The will never takes the least step but to this object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who
hang themselves."Despite what many in the church may be lead to believe, it is not a sin for Christians to seek their happiness. In fact people were created, by God, to find true happiness. This way of thinking runs in opposition to what many Christians consider righteous and upright behavior; but the truth is, Christians should never feel ashamed for seeking joy. In fact, as Palm 37:4 tells us, we are commanded to “delight ourselves in the Lord.” This is not an appeal or even a request…it is a command. And to not pursue our joy would be a sin.
But there is an important caveat we all must keep in mind as we seek our joy:
Sin is not the pursuit of joy and happiness. Sin is the rejecting God's offer of perfect, complete and absolute joy. In other words, when God offers us joy -- like a wonderful filet mignon dinner -- and we push it away in exchange for a plate of rancid beef, we are telling the creator of all things [including joy] that his perfect joy is not sufficient to satisfy us, or worse yet it is not what we desire. This is sin.
God is our treasure. God is the source, provider and sustainer of the joy we were created to enjoy. This joy can only be found in Him. There are no substitutes to the joy we find in God and a pursuit of any other joy is not only accepting less than we were created for but it is also a sin.
So here’s the challenge: If God is our treasure and the joy we were created to obtain; why is so much of our life wasted, seeking treasure that will never satisfy our souls? Take just a moment to pause on the weight and reality of that question. Is God the treasure you are seeking? If not, he should be. If so, then how much time are you spending everyday seeking to be filled in a more complete way by the treasure that is your God?
Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all [other] things will be added unto you.
Matthew 6:33
For His Glory,
jason
