THE GIFT OF PLEASURE

It’s In Our DNA!

“You open Your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.” Ps. 145:16

Is pleasure really a gift from God? Doesn’t God warn us about the evils of pleasure: “He who loves pleasure will become poor” or “The hearts of fools is in the house of pleasure”? What about warnings about being “enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures” or how in the last days people will be “lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God”? Pleasure sounds more like a curse than a gift. Is something missing here?

Eric Liddell, also known as the “Flying Scotsman” and gold medal winner in the 400 m track race at the 1924 Paris Olympics, made this intriguing comment: “God made me fast, and when I run, I feel His pleasure.” There is no doubt that Eric Liddell experienced pleasure in running, but he also understood that his pleasure was God’s pleasure as well. He knew his Creator and that he was made for pleasure – both his and God’s. Knowing Him who is the source of all pleasure, it was an easy decision to set worldly fame aside for a greater joy as a missionary in China.

When it comes right down to it, the problem is not our desire for pleasure, but what we do with those desires. Many good things can become idols so that pleasure becomes the goal rather than the One who has blessed us with that pleasure. Reality is that pleasure is part of our DNA. The problem is not pleasure, but the pleasures that we choose and the place we give them in our lives.

For the follower of Christ, authentic pleasure is the evidence of God’s goodness, which compels us to worship Him with gratitude in our hearts. Though corrupted by sin, in Christ we are once again renewed in the knowledge that at “His right hand are pleasures evermore.” (Ps. 16:11)

CARRYING THE TORCH:
Our children and grandchildren often sense that Christianity is about joyless living in which pleasure is confined to a church potluck where we eat fried chicken on Styrofoam plates and stand around “socializing” with our Styrofoam cups of coffee or lemonade. Find out what gives your grandchildren pleasure and try to participate in that activity with them. Use it as a time to talk about why it gives them such pleasure, the source of that pleasure, and the goal of pleasure – to worship the Father with gratitude in our hearts!

PURCHASE THE TIME

I think we all know that we do not purchase what is already ours. We purchase what is not ours as it becomes available. Failure to “purchase” the time we receive for God’s purposes and glory means we lose that time for that purpose – forever. Death purchases it instead.

A grasp of the value of time is something worth leaving our grandchildren – both in terms of the limited amount we have, and in terms of the urgency to use it well because they understand what the Lord’s will is. I’d love to hear your comments on how we, as grandparents and parents, can teach this to our children effectively. What kinds of things are you doing to teach the value of time and how to “purchase it” rather than waste it?

A Time For Everything

Time is like a coin God has given me to spend. I determine how it will be spent, but if I am not careful, I will come to the end of the day, and eventually, the end of my life, only to discover the coins are gone without much to show for them. Wisdom knows that it’s not just a matter of spending, but spending at the right time for the right thing – kind of like climbing up in someone’s lap and just helping them cry.

As wise grandparents, we all want our grandkids to know the value and preciousness of this gift called TIME. What are some things you do as a grandparent to communicate the importance of wisely using time?   Do you take time for some “crazy” time stuff?  After all, not every moment has to be a “teachable moment”, you know — or does it?