I am careful not to say too much, too quickly. It’s not that I fear that if I believe something good will happen that it will soon just get ripped out from under me. I just don’t want to glory in only the good times. I want to be able to be content in every situation and with every circumstance.
Joy is deep in the pursuit of Your glory. I know that. I know it because You have said it in Your Word. I have also tasted the goodness of the Lord. Joy, happiness, contentment – they are all found in You. Regardless of which word is used to describe the fulfillment of life, You are the source of this.
“Then those who sing as well as those who play the flutes shall say, ‘All my springs of joy are in You,” Psalm 87:7.
Last night I was in my Personality Psychology class. We were discussing Buddhist Psychology. Sadly enough this does exist. Even sadder, it is beginning to get wider acceptance. Here is a quote that basically sets up the entire platform of this form of pseudo-psychology:
“Life is suffering.
Desire is the cause of suffering.
The way to end suffering is to end desire.”
At first ring, this almost sounds good. It certainly sounds good to people who are suffering and want the suffering to end. If this same person who is suffering also doesn’t have a grasp on who God is and what His purpose is for Himself and for us, this might look like a great solution. But, to those of us who know and pursue the heart of God, it is crap.
I’ll put this simply so that we don’t have to labor over it. God is glory. He isn’t a type of glory, a form of glory, or an alternate definition of glory. He is glory. God’s purpose is the maintenance of His glory. In other words, it is His job to sustain and support anything that makes Him glorious. “Our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases,” Psalm 115:3. He doesn’t need our permission to put Himself first and he does just that. As John Piper said in so many words, this would be selfish it a man or woman said it. It would seem self-centered. It would be an act of putting oneself above others. There is the catch. God is above others. How can He be egotistical when there is no one with whom to compare Himself. It takes not thinking like a human to realize that God can boast and brag on Himself.
We are secondary to this purpose of His glory. Our bringing glory to God fulfils a part of His overall desire to maintain His glory. This is where our joy lies. God is pleased with us when we give glory to Him. I don’t want to dive to deeply into this. I have shared this before.
If our joy comes from God when we bring glory to Him, then desire must not be a bad thing, as the Buddhist would say. Psalm 37:4 states that we should, “Delight ourselves in the Lord and He will give us the desires of our heart.”
This Buddhist Psychology stuff is a load of crap. Basically it means that we should get rid of any and every desire because that gets our expectations up. If our expectations are up, then we might get let down. I am not adding to this. It really is this stupid.
A better idea is to simply delight in the Lord. I believe this will be my choice for the day. I will honor Him. He is already pleased with me. But, I want to honor Him. I want to reflect gladly back to Him, His glory. This is joy to the marrow of my bones.
Joy is deep in the pursuit of Your glory. I know that. I know it because You have said it in Your Word. I have also tasted the goodness of the Lord. Joy, happiness, contentment – they are all found in You. Regardless of which word is used to describe the fulfillment of life, You are the source of this.
“Then those who sing as well as those who play the flutes shall say, ‘All my springs of joy are in You,” Psalm 87:7.
Last night I was in my Personality Psychology class. We were discussing Buddhist Psychology. Sadly enough this does exist. Even sadder, it is beginning to get wider acceptance. Here is a quote that basically sets up the entire platform of this form of pseudo-psychology:
“Life is suffering.
Desire is the cause of suffering.
The way to end suffering is to end desire.”
At first ring, this almost sounds good. It certainly sounds good to people who are suffering and want the suffering to end. If this same person who is suffering also doesn’t have a grasp on who God is and what His purpose is for Himself and for us, this might look like a great solution. But, to those of us who know and pursue the heart of God, it is crap.
I’ll put this simply so that we don’t have to labor over it. God is glory. He isn’t a type of glory, a form of glory, or an alternate definition of glory. He is glory. God’s purpose is the maintenance of His glory. In other words, it is His job to sustain and support anything that makes Him glorious. “Our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases,” Psalm 115:3. He doesn’t need our permission to put Himself first and he does just that. As John Piper said in so many words, this would be selfish it a man or woman said it. It would seem self-centered. It would be an act of putting oneself above others. There is the catch. God is above others. How can He be egotistical when there is no one with whom to compare Himself. It takes not thinking like a human to realize that God can boast and brag on Himself.
We are secondary to this purpose of His glory. Our bringing glory to God fulfils a part of His overall desire to maintain His glory. This is where our joy lies. God is pleased with us when we give glory to Him. I don’t want to dive to deeply into this. I have shared this before.
If our joy comes from God when we bring glory to Him, then desire must not be a bad thing, as the Buddhist would say. Psalm 37:4 states that we should, “Delight ourselves in the Lord and He will give us the desires of our heart.”
This Buddhist Psychology stuff is a load of crap. Basically it means that we should get rid of any and every desire because that gets our expectations up. If our expectations are up, then we might get let down. I am not adding to this. It really is this stupid.
A better idea is to simply delight in the Lord. I believe this will be my choice for the day. I will honor Him. He is already pleased with me. But, I want to honor Him. I want to reflect gladly back to Him, His glory. This is joy to the marrow of my bones.
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