Day Nine: "What Makes God Smile?"

Key Points:
The smile of God is the goal of your life
The bible says " figure out what will please Christ, and the do it"
There are five acts of worship that make God smile 1. when we love him supremely 2. when we trust him completely 3. when we obey him wholeheartedly 4. when we praise and thank him continually 5. when we use our abilities
Every activity, except for sin, can be done for God's pleasure if you do it with an attitude of praise.
What God looks at is the attitude of your heart: Is pleasing him your deepest desire. The focus changes from how much am I getting out of life to how much is is God getting out of my life?
If you make pleasing God the goal of your life there is nothing that God won't do for the person totally absorbed with this goal.

Verse: " The Lord is pleased with those who worship him and trust his love" Psalm 147: 11

This chapter was very straight forward and upfront shared that the goal of your life should be pleasing God. When I first read this I was a little concerned. I think we get into a trap and think that we can only be praising God when we are doing religious things like church, bible study etc but this chapter makes it clear that everything you do in your life, if done for God, can please him. This makes sense...since God made us and gave each of us special talents and abilities then of course he would want us to use them. I think the key is using them in the right manner. So my ability to run should be used to inspire others or fundraise and my ability to research should be used to create useful knowledge to help transform someones life...ah ha...that makes total sense. Another pleasing act to God mentioned in the reading is loving God wholeheartedly. I think that I am finally starting to understand the love that God has for me and just as i long to be loved, so does he. I think all this searching...this I need a boyfriend thing is really my way of attempting to fill the void where God's love should fill my heart. Once you understand that God loves you more than you can even understand and this his love is more powerful and faithful that any earthly love...the longing kinda goes away. I am complete with God's love...and thats all I need. Knowing God loves me makes me feel worthy and important in the way I think you are suppose to feel in a marriage. That being said...I still want a boyfriend and I think that God wants me to have one too. God gave Adam Eve and in turn will also give me a husband. I'm praying about it and most of all praying for guidance. A prayer that God will lead me into a growing relationship with a man who is in love with. As we grow in our personal relationship with the Lord, we will grow together. Maybe this person, the husband god has picked out for me, is who I think it is...and if it then great, awesome, I am so happy to have found him...but if it's not...then I'm praying God will give me the signs to recognize this and move forward. I think that brings me to the the second point made in the reading, it pleases God when we trust him completely. Noah trusted God with all his heart and followed his will. I would like to be like Noah. I think there are so many areas in my life where I tend to not acknowledge God and try to tackle in my own. Doesn't it seems a lot like we only ask God for help when we need something...when we have tried to handle something on our own and realized that without God we are powerless. I think what I'm trying to say is that I need God's grace and help in all the areas of my life. Trusting God completely is something I am defiantly still struggling with. But I think that this trust comes with a relationship and I a build and grow in my relationship with the lord...I will also learn to trust him undoubtedly. So right now I am in a place of uncertainty and am hoping that God will reveal himself to guide me in the right direction. I pray that he sees the strides I have made to turn my life around and that I seeking a personal relationship with him in all I do. If someone asked me right now what I wanted most out of life my answer would be to fulfill purpose and do something that matters and to know that no matter what happened in my life in the end I loved and trusted the lord with all my heart.