When God is happiest …
By David Myers
During the Word
Working prayer session that preceded our last chancery
staff meeting, the staff was asked to consider what it is about us,
individually, that pleases God the most.
I
thought about the question for a long time. Hmmmmm.
What is it about me that pleases God the most? It
certainly isn’t my haircut. It isn’t the fact that I consider quality
television anything with the word “phenomena” in the title. And it couldn’t be
that I prefer the company of fowl. Is there any reason why God should be pleased
with me?
If I had been asked what displeases God the
most about me, I could have gone on for several hours. In fact, I could
probably have held a week-long seminar: “‘Why God
Thinks Dave is a Big Doofus.’ Scheduled speakers
include Dr. Joyce Brothers, Dave’s former boss Mr. Himler,
and that guy who works at the video store.”
To my surprise,
everyone else at the staff meeting said just about the same thing regarding
themselves -- that it would be much easier to think of areas where they need
improvement. They’re a fine and humble bunch, this chancery staff.
After a great
deal of thought (which, for me is about five minutes – I once tried to think
longer than that and injured my spleen), I decided that perhaps it’s the little
things which pleases God the most about me.
Liking this
thought and where it was going, I thought on, regardless of the physical
dangers.
Perhaps God is
most pleased when I’m using his gifts, like practicing the piano or making tuna
salad surprise (all the meals I cook have “surprise” at the end, because I
never know how they’re going to taste).
I love to play
the banjo despite its effect on the living; I like construction projects
regardless of my inability to cut a piece of wood to the right measurement the
first time around. Okay, the first three times around. Four.
... Sometimes five. To me, practicing an instrument or
working on a construction project isn’t work at all. When you’re doing
something you really love, it’s like being a kid on the playground.
Could this be
what pleases God the most -- about me, anyway?
So, a few
nights after the meeting I’m watching TV when a narrator says the following
words: “Someone once said that God is happiest when his children are at play.”
I sat there,
the words echoing in my head. It was one of those profound moments. I was so
stunned that I couldn’t move at all (except to get a pop and some chips and
dip, and then later to see if I had any email).
“God is happiest
when his children are at play.” He is happiest when our spirits are filled with
joy. And along that line, he’s happiest when we’re endeavoring to help others
feel the same.
Helping
others ....
Have you ever noticed how much more joy there is in helping others
than there is in helping yourself? I’m perfectly happy to help a neighbor pick
up a bunch of broken limbs, but if it’s my yard? Eventually those branches
will decompose and become topsoil. Granted, it could take a generation,
but I’m willing to wait.
The question
the staff was posed brought to mind that little instruction book God saw fit to
endow to us. You know the one: it gives implicit directions on how to have a
life filled with joy. Why would God leave us instructions on how to live a
joy-filled life -- one that, in effect, feels more like play than like work?
Watch the news.
It’s no wonder Got sent instructions.
I think we can
all assume that God desires to be happy -- not vengeful, not angry, but happy.
And one thing that can truly ruin a happy mood is when one’s children are
acting up.
God is happiest
with us when we feel love for others and for ourselves. Where there is love,
there is the smiling face of God peering down at us with unbridled joy.
If we are to
follow his instructions, we should all, from this point on, do one simple
thing: love every person on earth, including ourselves. That’s
where the joy is … that’s where life at play is found.