Seek your joy in the glory of God and the good of others. Cowslip Meadow by Alex Brown CC BY 2.0 (Cropped)
Beloved,
Would you be happy? Would you be joyful? Would you seek your greatest good?
We think you should!
There is NOTHING wrong with self-interest. There is EVERYTHING wrong with misplaced self-interest.
Seek your joy in the glory of God. Seek your delight in the delight of others. Love God. Love your neighbor. Your joy is in the glory of God and the good of others.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6).
“Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!” (Psalm 34:8)
If you would be satisfied and blessed (and you should want both), then pursue them with zeal. To be truly satisfied and blessed one must seek God’s kingdom, not their own.
“And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first” (Matthew 19:29-30).
The first (those seeking their joy in themselves in this lifetime) will be last….the last (those seeking their joy in God’s kingdom come) will be first. Strive to be first. Indeed, you are commanded to strive to enter the rest of God’s kingdom (cf. Heb 4:11).
Search the Scriptures, be a Berean, see if it is not so. Look for all of the injunctions in Scripture to seek joy. Look for all of the commands in Scripture to seek God’s glory. Put the two of these together…seek your joy in the glory of God. Seek your delight in God’s glory.
10,000 Blessings in The Wonderful Counselor,
Jim