Faith Vs FateSample

Faith Pleases God

When I ponder the thought of pleasing God, it brings delight to my soul now, but it was not always that way. Because of the many negative teachings, I heard while growing up about God the term "Pleasing God" was anything but delightful I would say more fear was associated with the statement. This stems from my personal experience I had with the lack of a father figure in my life, so it was easy for me to adopt that God was hard to please and that drained my soul. But now, being married to a wonderful man and having two children of my own I have been able to see the love of a father through their eyes; because of this revelation, my relationship with my heavenly father has become delightful. 

When we understand  God loved us even while we were rebellious to him and there is nothing more we can do to please him for acceptance, we have found faith. The gift of faith shows him how much our confidence is in him. My kids need not please me for me to love them more; my love was fixed from the moment I laid eyes on them, and nothing they do can make me love them less or more. 

When our kids do something out of love and appreciation for us, that moves us to magnify our love at that moment where our hearts are pleased. In the same way when we bring praise and thanksgiving, or just valuing time in God's presence pleases his heart also. Pleasing God is not hard and laborious work, but instead, it is the exercising of faith in the One who can do the impossible. The Bible tells us God is a rewarder of those that seek him – "And without faith, it is impossible to please God because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Hebrews 11:6 NIV). To please God doesn't require our works and ability in ourselves, but pleasing God is resting in who he is and his ability to do what he says he will do, and this faith is only maintained by reading, hearing and meditating on him and his words.

In Hebrews 11, we read about the heroes of faith, and they were all very simple people like you and me but their confidence in God to come through for them is what etched their names in the hall of faith – they pleased God because they believed in him. When we put our trust and confidence in our Creator rather than in creation, we will be positioned to see mountains move; oceans parted, supplies never run dry, dead bones live and death defeated. One hero of faith skipped death completely, and all we know is that he walked faithfully with God and one-day God took him – "Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more because God took him away." (Genesis 5:24 NIV). How beautiful it would be to have our names engraved in the hall of faith in heaven. It's not too late my friends to please God - just come to him, believe who he says he is, and watch him do what he said he would do. Take the step of faith today and trust him!

"Faith looks not at what happens to him but at Him Whom he believes." ~Watchman Nee