Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
I distinctly remember the moment that I was going to ask my wife to marry me. I was young, 20 years old, stacking chairs in the church sanctuary with my childhood best friend. As we were stacking, he was talking about his current relationship at the time. Instead of listening to him, all I could remember was thinking about how much I loved being in the presence of my then-girlfriend. For some reason, I just had this sense that she was the one that I wanted to be with forever. That was a big decision to make in life. It didn't come because the heavens opened up and God said, this is it. This is the next step I have for you. No, it was just spending so much wonderful time with her and knowing the joy that I got in being around her.
The Joy of God's Presence
This same idea of pleasure and presence is exactly what we read about in our Verse of the Day today.
It comes from Psalm chapter 16, verse 11. "You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of Your presence and the pleasures of living with You forever."
I love David's writing, and I love that he is called a man after God's own heart. Have you ever stopped to wonder how he got a title like that? I know that's something that I would love to be known for. The more time that I've spent in the Word and studying the life of David, I'm convinced it's not because he was the most righteous, or the smartest, or the strongest, or even at times, the bravest. In fact, we have plenty of instances where we see that isn't the case.
What Made David Different
I think what made David a man after God's own heart is something so much more profound and beautiful, and I think we get a glimpse of that in our verse today. See, David knew what life looked like when it went off the rails, when he went his own ways. But he also knew that when he just simply sat in the presence of God, he found true joy, true pleasure that satisfied his soul. David knew that he had all the authority, all the power at his beck and call to go wherever he wanted to. But as David writes this Psalm and he recounts all the wonderful things that are going on, he asked the Lord to show him the way of life, true life.
An Invitation to Be with God
It doesn't always come in these moments where God's voice is booming and He says, do this. It comes through exactly what we read here—spending time with God. If you feel like you just need this sense of direction in life, I want to invite you into this practice of being with God, soaking up His Word, memorizing it, meditating on it, spending time in prayer, going out into nature and just enjoying God's creation. Because the more time you spend with Him, and the more you realize how wonderful it is, you're naturally going to want to stay in it. When God starts to move, you'll start to find that your soul will naturally follow Him so that you can remain in those joys and those pleasures.
Take time today, every day, to slow down, to remind yourself that God's presence is with you. Just like He walked with Adam and Eve in the garden, just like Jesus walked with the disciples, His Spirit goes with you wherever you go. Enjoy that. Find pleasure in that, because we have a beautiful life with God.
