DESIGNED FOR GOD'S HAPPINESS

You were designed for God's happiness.

The moment you were born into the world, God was there as an unseen witness, smiling at your birth.  He wanted you alive, and your arrival gave Him great pleasure.  God did not need to create you, but he chose to create you for his own enjoyment.  You exist for his benefit, his glory, his purpose, and his delight.

Bringing enjoyment to God, living for his pleasure, is the first purpose of your life.  When you fully understand this truth, you will never again have a problem with feeling insignificant.  It proves your worth.  If you are that important to God, and he considers you valuable enough to keep with him for eternity, what greater significance could you have?  You are a child of God, and you bring pleasure to God like nothing else he has ever created.

One of the greatest gifts God has given you is the ability to enjoy pleasure.  He wired you with five senses and emotions so you can experience it.  He wants you to enjoy life, not just endure it.  The reason you are able to enjoy pleasure is that God made you in his image.

Bringing pleasure to God is called 'worship'.  Anything you do that brings pleasure to God is an act of worship.  Like a diamond, worship is multifaceted.

Depending on your religious background, you may need to expand your understanding of 'worship'.  You may think of church services with singing, praying, and listening to a sermon.  Or you may think of ceremonies, candles, and communion.  Or you may think of healing, miracles, and ecstatic experiences.  Worship can include these elements, but worship is far more than these expressions.

Worship is a lifestyle.




Adapted from the book 'The Purpose Driven Life' by Rick Warren.