I sure hope you have had the pleasure to hear Sam Storms explain his thoughts on Psalm 16:11.
"You make known to me the fullness of joy and at your right hand are pleasures forevermore."
I'm passing on some of his quotes for your consideration.
"We were created for pleasure...not for boredom. We have been given an insatiable desire for it (pleasure). God gave it to us. Don't apologize for it!
There is in your soul an insatiable hunger for happiness. It's a chronic and unending ache for joy. God has hard-wired this into your soul. You have been given an unrelenting passion for pleasure. It's God's 'fault'. This is what it means to be made in God's image. We hunger for fascination and joy....we long to be thrilled! (hence the amusement parks we visit, the sunrises we get up early for to watch, the mathematical equations we pour over to solve, the football games we scream about)
His key statement: " The key to following Jesus is NOT from trying harder but enjoying more."
This principle explains so much of what we do and what we enjoy. Mr. Storms takes us to Greek mythology to give us a demonstration of this principle. Remember Ulysses? Can you see the scene as he is tied to the mast of the ship passing the Sirens? Were it not for the ropes that held him fast, he certainly would have given into their allure. He survived the passage.
Now recall Jason. He also had to journey through the Sirens but didn't use the ropes to hold him to his ship. He brought on Orpheus, a skilled musician, a beautiful musician whose song was stronger than the Sirens. Jason was captivated by a sweeter sound. He didn't just survive; He triumphed.
Okay, question for you? Looking at your life, would you think you were struggling to survive and make it through your difficulties or do see yourself as one captivated by a sweeter sound and thriving? Are we 'white knuckling' it with resolve and willpower? Sounds wearisome. How long can we keep that up?
So what are we driven by? Fear of the consequences of sin? Is that really enough to keep us from the temporary pleasures we enjoy in our sin?
Well, I can answer that for me. No! When I have a temper tantrum with one of my girls and give over self-control, I'm not thinking about the consequences. I'm not holding back. So what thought do I adopt in that moment so I don't keep repeating the fruitless effect of anger on my kids?
I want to be different. What does it sound like in my head?
Let's see...Sam said...."our only hope is in maximizing our pleasure in God." Lord, what is it that I really want in that moment? I want my daughter to obey. I want gratitude, I want, I want.... But what I want, I cannot have and so I argue and fight (hey, sounds like James doesn't it?) Okay, stay with me friends....so I want these things; I want to be in control. I want to be like God because God is in control of everything! But I'm not God! I won't ever be. And so, I can either do the Ulysses thing, grit my teeth, try to resist the urge to yell. Too late. No one tied me up and gagged me.
However, I can choose Jason's approach. Where's my Orpheus? Who will captivate me with a greater pleasure?
"God, somehow there is a pleasure here, a sweeter sound to be heard, a facet of your beauty to be drawn to in this moment. Oh Jesus, sing louder! I need you NOW."
And what's the beauty that draws me to Him? He was confident that His Father would never leave him in his moments of temptation...all but that one moment when He cried out from the Cross.
"Father, why have you forsaken me?"
Did I just get that? He was forsaken once that I would never have to be! Now that's beauty! That's the stuff of all true heroism! What a God. What a man! That's my Hero! His beauty is drawing me in.
And He is for me and with me at that very moment when I'm on the edge of crazy anger. He is assuring me that He is strong and won't leave me alone to deal with it!
Hebrews 13: 5 "I will in no wise desert you or leave you alone in the field of contest or in a position of suffering, I will in no wise let go or loose my sustaining grasp." He's speaking what's true all the time.
My anger won't accomplish what I want. Put it away. Let go of my grip for control and remember it's a process of change. I am changing and so is she. Suspend my judgment and don't expect unreasonable , immediate change just because I am annoyed at the moment. Fair enough. So I go back to what God says is true and rehearse it, repeat it, whisper it, lay hold of it until I believe it.
"How sweet it was all at once to be relieved of all those temporal pleasures and to be rid of the fruitless joys that I once feared to lose...You drove them from me and took their place! You, who are sweeter than all pleasures." Augustine
Sing louder Jesus! Replace my fruitless joys with You.
Remember God
“What one thing about God in Christ speaks directly into today’s trouble? … Just as we don’t change all at once, so we don’t swallow all of truth in one gulp. We are simple people. You can’t remember ten things at once. Invariably, if you could remember just ONE true thing in the moment of trial, you’d be different. Bible “verses” aren’t magic. But God’s words are revelations of God from God for our redemption. When you actually remember God, you do not sin. The only way we ever sin is by suppressing God, by forgetting, by tuning out his voice, switching channels, and listening to other voices. When you actually remember, you actually change. In fact, remembering is the first change.”
- David Powlison
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