The Lord Delights in You

Transcript

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Welcome to Beyond Sunday and Day 22 of Anchored in God's Promises. If you've been journeying through this series from the beginning, you've probably noticed how each verse we've studied has shown a different side of God's heart, his presence, his provision, his faithfulness, even his strength. But today's verse shows us something that's honestly hard for many of us to believe. God doesn't just put up with you, he delights in you. It's found in Zephaniah three 17. The Lord your God is with you, the mighty warrior who saved. He will take great delight in you, in his love. He will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you With singing. The promise begins with the presence. The Lord your God is with you. This isn't the distant, far off presence of a ruler who doesn't know your name. This is a personal God who draws near, who stays, who walks with his people. Honestly, it's easy to imagine God with the world in general, but much harder to believe He's with me specifically. But this verse makes it personal. Your God is with you. That means right now whether you're driving, walking, or sitting quietly, he is right here. Next, Zephaniah calls him the mighty warrior who saves this, paints a picture of God as both tender and powerful. He's not a passive observer. He's a warrior who fights for his people in Israel's history, God continually rescued them out of slavery through battles from exile, and for this and and for us. His ultimate act of saving was through Jesus conquering sin and death on our behalf. When you feel under attack, whether by temptation, discouragement, or spiritual opposition, remember, your God is not weak. He is mighty to save. Here's where it gets really personal. The verse says, he will take great delight in you. Let that sink in. God delights in you, not in some future version of you who has it all together. Not in a cleaned up version of your past. He delights in you today as you are. For many of us, this is hard to believe. We can imagine God tolerating us. We can imagine God forgiving us, maybe even using us, but delighting in us, rejoicing over us. That feels foreign, but this is his heart. Just like a parent delight in their child, not because the child is perfect, but simply because they're theirs. God delights in you because you belong to him. The verse ends with an image so beautiful, it almost feels impossible. It says He will rejoice over you with singing. Picture that for a moment. The God who created the galaxies is singing over you, not just commanding angels, not just orchestrating history, singing over your life, over your story. If you've. Ever sung over a baby to calm them or watch someone light up when their favorite song comes on. You've caught a glimpse of this truth. God's love for you is not mechanical, it's musical, it's expressive, it's joyful. A woman in our church once told me, I've never believed God could actually delight to me. I've always felt like I was just disappointing him. But then she began reading verses like Zephaniah three 17 and Romans chapter eight, and slowly her view shifted. She said, I realize that when God looks at me, he sees Jesus covering me. And because he delights in his son, he delights in me too. That realization changed her whole prayer life from approaching God and shame to now approaching him with joy. Maybe that's the shift that you need today as well. So here's your challenge today. Take a few minutes and imagine God is singing over your life. It might feel awkward at first. But visualize it, hear his voice. Not harsh or disappointed, but joyful and strong and full of love. And then write down this sentence. God delights in me. Say it with me. God delights in me. Read it a few times until it moves from your head to your heart. Let's pray. Father, thank you that you are not just with us, not just saving us, but rejoicing over us. Thank you. Thank you that you actually delight in us. Not because we're perfect, but because we are yours. Help us to believe this promise today and let it change the way we walk, pray and live in Jesus' name. Amen. Hey, thank you for joining me today on day 22 of Anchored in God's promises. This verse spoke to you. Share it with someone who struggles to believe that God could actually delight in them. They might need this truth more than you know. I'll see you back here tomorrow.