The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"Howdy Neighbor!"
(Part 2)
Turns out Frances (and our beagle Ellie) had a similar experience with the sweet little "Howdy Neighbor!" child I mentioned in yesterday's message. During a walk, they encountered her as I did, and received a similar enthusiastic greeting. Frances is not sure about the "Howdy…" But she did feel the same enthusiasm and genuine warmth that flowed from the dear little girl's heart.
"The prayer of the upright is His delight" (Proverbs 15:8).
I don't suppose any theme has more found its way into these devotionals over the course of 23 years than Solomon's wondrous revelation that God finds joy to the degree of "delight" in the prayers of those He has made "upright" by His grace. Can it be that the sweet little girl's obvious happiness upon her encounters with humans (and beagles) serves as a reflection of our Lord's pleasure when we approach His throne of grace? I think so. Moreover, as I have often mentioned through the years, I know of no other truth that more motivates prayer than the possibility of delighting the heart of the God so worthy of any joy we can bring to Him.
When pondering the mystery of God's love for our fellowship with Him, all roads lead to Calvary. There, the Lord Jesus Christ purchased our relationship and fellowship with God by purchasing the freest gift ever given through the highest cost ever remitted. How much does our Heavenly Father desire communion with your heart and mine? So much that He forsook His beloved Son on the cross in order to make possible our redemption from sin, and our eternal place of grace in His heart. "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" (Matthew 27:46). The lonely cry sounds through the ages in untold sorrow. Accompanying the sadness, however, are the strains of a promise that could not bless us in any other way: "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" (Hebrews 13:5). How much does God love your heart and mine? How sweet is our voice to Him? (Song of Solomon 2:14). Look to Calvary. Listen to Calvary. And then realize how much the forlorn sights and sounds assure us that somehow God finds literal delight in the prayers of the upright.
It is one thing to pray for others and ourselves in the confidence of real benefit and blessing. What a wonder! It is quite another, however, to pray with the thought of bringing to the heart of God a joy He will not otherwise know. Such contemplation transcends wonder. A sweet little girl, graced with a heart of genuine happiness upon the approach of people, reminds us of Another who responds in kind. How can this be? We do well to leave the question behind. Let us rather press toward the throne of grace in the certainty that a glad Heart awaits our arrival. Wonder indeed, transcendent wonder we remember through the delight of a child that speaks of the delight of Another…
"Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise."
(Matthew 21:16)
"The Lord taketh pleasure in His people."
(Psalm 149:4)
Weekly Memory Verse
Walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savor.
(Ephesians 5:2)
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