Do you spend more time concerned whether God is disappointed in you or how much He loves you? We tend to focus on the details of our lives that need improvement over the truth of who God says we are. As believers, the truth is God does not look at us and see faults. He sees who He created us to be.
Before the foundation of the earth you were chosen: "...even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him" (Ephesians 1:4 ESV).
You are His child: “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1 NIV)
God delights in you: “But the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.” (Psalm 147:11 ESV)
As His children, Our Father enjoys who we are and who we are becoming through His love and grace.
Do you see how God delights in you? If you are still focusing on the broken places in your life, take a moment to look through the eyes of God.
Here are 10 things God enjoys about you:
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1. You Are Made in His Image
In the same way a father enjoys watching his children who are like him, God enjoys how much you are made like Him. During creation, God stopped and said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness" (Genesis 1:26). He created You to be His image-bearer. He is delighted when people look at you because he knows they are looking at Him. Created by Him, you have His heart and His Spirit. He made a plan for your life before you were born, and He carries it out in your life each day.
"And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me," Says the Lord Almighty. (1 Corinthians 6:18 ESV)
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2. You Are Unique
God rejoices over your individuality. He designed you to be unique. There is no one like you. No other person has a fingerprint similar to yours, and your cellular makeup, your DNA, is the only one of its kind in the world. God knew how special you were before you were born. You were created to be who you are, exactly the way you are. You are God's masterpiece created for a purpose, made to be His extraordinary creation.
"I knew you before you were formed within your mother's womb; before you were born, I sanctified you and appointed you as my spokesman to the world." (Jeremiah 1:5 TLB)
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3. You Are Part of His Kingdom Plan
In His power and authority, God can fulfill His plans without help. But in His love and mercy, He includes us in His kingdom plans. Through Jesus, you are His adopted child, and He enjoys it when you live out His plans for your life, plans of hope, and a future. You bring Him joy as you obey His commands and follow His precepts. You are His delight and treasure. God enjoys how you are part of His plans.
We are, therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God.(2 Corinthians 5:20 NIV)
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When You Spend Time with Him
The time when children sit beside their parents and talk about their day is a treasure. Your Heavenly Father delights in similar treasured moments. God wants a relationship with you so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to make a way for you to sit with Him and tell Him about your day. When you make time to be with Him in prayer, He delights in you. When you carve out time in your day to listen to His voice, He rejoices. God hears you, sees you, and knows you. He enjoys spending time with you.
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33 NIV)
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When You Tell Others about What He Does in Your Life
The apostle Paul often preached the gospel by retelling the story of how Jesus spoke to him on the road to Damascus. Jesus stopped him in his tracks and changed the path of his life. Jesus did the same for you. He found you where you were and changed your life. When you tell others how God has worked in your life, you are telling His story and the story of His steadfast love and grace. God enjoys when you share how He changed your life. God delights when you share the testimony of His love and power.
Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story—those he redeemed from the hand of the foe, those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south. (Psalm 107:3-4 NIV)
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You Delight in His Word
To know God is to delight in His Word. Your heavenly Father enjoys watching you seek to understand more about His character, His will, and His promises. When you spend time reading and meditating on Scripture, your heart is changed and inclined more toward Him. Each verse is divinely inspired and filled with evidence of His love, grace, and mercy. Knowing His Word is so important, He commands us to write it on our hearts and souls. (Deuteronomy 11:18) Through His Word, God will show you how He delights in you.
"...so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:11 NIV)
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When You Worship Him
In the Garden of Eden, God walked with Adam and Eve, and their response was ongoing worship. For God's constant presence and provision, there is no other response. But worshipping God includes more than singing and praising His Name. You worship God every time you obey His commands and ask forgiveness. Your worship includes serving others and giving your resources. Worship includes being in awe of His creation, giving thanks, and reverent prayer. Your Creator is worthy and enjoys the sweet aroma of your worship and praise.
He alone is your God, the only one who is worthy of your praise, the one who has done these mighty miracles that you have seen with your own eyes. (Deuteronomy 10:21)
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When You Love Others
The most important commandment is to love God with all your heart, mind, and soul. The second most important commandment is to love others. Through your love of God, you are inspired and empowered to love others. (1 John 4:19) Paul says to think of others as better than yourself. (Philippians 2:3) So then, God enjoys when you selflessly share His love, putting others first. That is how the world knows you are His, by the way you love Him first and others above yourself.
"By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:35 ESV)
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When You Continue to Be Transformed
Each time you love others well, give thanks freely, and worship God above all things, the more you become like Jesus, more like what you are meant to be. Your Creator enjoys how you continue to be transformed. As you think about things that are true, noble, right, pure, and lovely, your mind becomes more like the mind of Christ (Philippians 4:8). Each time you serve others selflessly and give freely, your heart is changed. Your Father delights in how you are growing and changing to be more like His Son.
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV)
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Your Future Is Eternity
As a child of God, your future lies in eternity and in the presence of God. He placed the longing for heaven and eternity in your heart (Ecclesiastes 33:11). Imagine how He enjoys knowing that you will reside in a heavenly home designed specifically for you. You are precious to Our Father. He knew you before the foundation of the earth and knit you together. You are His masterpiece, and He waits for you.
There are many homes up there where my Father lives, and I am going to prepare them for your coming. When everything is ready, then I will come and get you, so that you can always be with me where I am. If this weren't so, I would tell you plainly.(John 14:2-3 TLB)
Today, rather than considering those things about you that need brushing off and straightening up, instead focus on the person God delights in and enjoys. You are a chosen child of God, delighted over in every way.
Tamela Turbeville lives for every woman with a difficult past to know God loves them, they are worthy and wanted. She is wife to Richard, and mother to three grown sons and two beautiful daughters-in-law. When doing what she loves most-- studying God’s Word, reading and writing--she is surrounded by her six rescue dogs in her small office in south Arkansas. She began Living One Word to write and share how God redeems the unlovable and you can read more about Tamela, her journey, and her family at www.livingoneword.com, on Facebook, and Instagram.
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Originally published Friday, 18 October 2019.
