Delight in the Lord.

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

– Psalm 37:4

We don’t know how to be happy. This is a painful truth.

Just in the past twenty years alone, it is undeniable how much significant progress has been made in business, technology, and communication. We live in a time of amazing scientific feats and innovations occurring in breathtaking speed. But even as we see an increasing trend in terms of overall quality of life over time, dissatisfaction is still a prominent feature of the human condition. Evident in rising levels of anxiety and depression across cultures, our mental health seems to suffer from accumulating more and more. We are running the rat’s race, chasing one goal after another, never reaching contentment. Hurrying through life, unable to enjoy it.

Are you happy now that you’ve received the blessing?

When our prayers get answered, our lives get elevated to a whole new different level. This new order results to a new set of potential problems. Now that you received everything that you’ve been praying for, the ball is in your court: How will you use the blessings that you’ve been given? What kind of person are you becoming?

These are questions that I often ask myself. For a 25-year-old, my life seems to be in order from the outside. I work for a good company in a role that is a great fit for me. I have an opportunity to study and teach in my university. I have fulfilling relationships with my family and friends. I have a special someone who shares my faith and my unique sense of humor. Overall, life is good.

While I am thankful to have all these blessings, I often feel a twinge of fear in my heart. I want things to be perfect. I want to be the best that I can possibly be. I want things to be done now because I don’t have time to slack off. I want to maximize my opportunities. To do otherwise makes me feel guilty, as if I didn’t deserve the privileges that I have. I feel pressured to perform and afraid to fail.

I used to pray for the things that I now have in my life. If you asked me three years ago, I would say that there was no immediate nor definite answer to my prayers. I only had my faith and my belief that God will give me what I want if it is aligned to His will for my life. I waited and I persevered. I wanted to be ready for the blessings that I was asking God to give me.

What does it mean to take delight in the Lord?

Now that God has answered my prayer by giving me what I wanted and the hope for better things to come, fear has entered my heart all the same. Humanity’s first response to God is almost always fear — a fear of a higher being whose might is beyond our limited understanding, a fear of His gaze and His watchful eyes, and a fear to admit who we truly are in the face of Him who is just.

Jesus tells us repeatedly, “Don’t be afraid. It is I.” When good things happen to us, Jesus makes His presence known. Like sheep recognizing the voice of the Shepherd, we are called to run into God’s loving embrace in the present moment. He tells us, “Don’t be afraid of joy. Don’t be afraid of hope. Don’t be afraid of love. Don’t be afraid to enjoy My blessings because I am the Giver of all good things.”

In the face of a blessing, we are invited by the psalm to delight, to welcome joy, and to allow happiness into our lives. We are called to see that we are blessed. We are favored and loved by a generous God. An answered prayer, by itself, is already a blessing. It is amazing to know that God is listening and that He provides for and answers our prayers according to His will.

But the blessing doesn’t stop at the gift — the object of our desire already granted — rather it ends on God who is the Giver. To fully benefit from the graces received, we are called to focus on Him so we can see His gift as part of a bigger plan for our salvation. When we elevate our focus to the will of God, we open our door to His providence, support, and His presence. We say, “Lord, thank you for your goodness and generosity. You are welcome here. Use this for your glory.”

This is how we welcome joy as Christians: when we slow down to the present moment, immersed in God’s peace in prayer. It is only through constant communion with Christ in the silent reflection of prayer — with gratitude for blessings received and in hope of more to come — that we can proceed with living life happily. Here we can take delight in the reliable care and generous providence of a happy Giver, the Source of all good things. Therefore, we do not worry about whether we are good enough, worthy, or deserving of His grace. We know that the outcomes in our lives do not depend solely on us. Our hopes and desires are secure in God.

I will sing forever of your love, oh Lord. I will celebrate the wonders of your name.

– “I Will Sing Forever” by Bukas Palad Ministry