The other day when I wasn't feeling so good, my phone lit up. It was a text from a friend, wondering how I was doing. Just that simple little gesture made me feel a lot better. Why is that?
Deep down inside each of us there is a desire to be loved. A new-born baby cries in the middle of the night. It might be hungry of it might simply want to be held by a warm, comforting mother. I think it's part of our nature . . . the desire to be loved.
What are some of the things that make YOU happy? Being with family and friends? Sleeping in in the morning when you're all comfy and warm? Perhaps it's that first cup of coffee in the morning, the wagging of a dog's tail or the purr of a kitten. It could be the embrace of a spouse or a close friend or simply sitting down in a comfortable chair at the end of a long day. All these things can bring comfort, a certain sense of relaxation and safety. The sense that everything is right with the world.
One of the simple pleasures I have come to enjoy since placing my faith in Christ is that of praying with friends. There is nothing that says "I care" better than taking someone to the foot of the cross and praying for them, WITH them. I don't do this for my own gratification but rather for God's glorification. And what better way to tell someone I love them than to introduce them to MY best friend, Jesus.
"28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” - Mark 12:28-31
It is a simple pleasure, and honor, to come before the Lord in prayer, particularly when we bring someone with us.
A friend of mine once asked me to pray for them. I agreed to do that . . . right then and there. We stood in the middle of a post-worship crowd of people, in church, and we prayed. Prayer should be our first thought, not our last resort.
Life contains many simple pleasures. The question is, "Who is at the root of those pleasures?" I find pleasure in wienie roll-ups, but where is the source of that pleasure? My wife? Pillsbury? If I eat too many of them the source of pleasure might be Satan. But if I told you my wife made them out of love because she knows I like them. Who would be the source of pleasure then? It's God! Because God IS love.
Where do our pleasures lie? In "the flesh?" Or in "the Spirit?" It makes all the difference in the world . . . and beyond.
Please, Please Me - The Beatles
Finding Your Pleasure In God's Pleasure - Desiring God
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