What Makes God Smile ~ Day 9

Smile on me, your servant;

teach me the right way 

to live

                                    Ps 119:135

We need to find out what will please God to make Him smile. (Eph 5:10) The Bible tells us about Noah, who is an example of a life that is pleasing to God. (Gen 6:8) In his time, everyone else in the world was living for themselves, not God. As much as it grieved God, He wiped out all of mankind, except Noah and his family, because Noah brought pleasure to God.
There are five acts of worship that make God smile. Noah knew this and did these things to make God happy.

1) To love him supremely

Noah loved God more than anything else in the world. As a result, he had a close relationship with Him. (Gen 6:9b) God wants us to know Him and love Him, and He desires to love us back. (Hosea 6:6)

Jesus called it the greatest commandment when He said, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment." (Matt 22:37 – 38)

2) To trust him completely

Noah also trusted God. God came to Noah and told him His plan was to flood the world and start over with his family. Can you imagine the amount of trust that Noah must have had in God? Then God wanted Noah to build the ark and round up the animals. If it wasn't God speaking, I think that Noah would have ignored it; he probably would have thought it was crazy talk. But, it was God speaking, and Noah wanted to please Him. And so he did! He trusted God completely, and that made God smile.

Trusting God means having faith that He knows what is best for us. (Ps 147:11) Trusting is an act of worship. "Without faith, it is impossible to please God". (Hebs 11:6)

3) To obey him wholeheartedly

God gave Noah very detailed instructions and Noah obeyed. (Gen 6:22) To obey wholeheartedly means to do what God asks without question or hesitation. Delayed obedience is really disobedience. We do not need to understand, we just need to obey. Obedience unlocks understanding. We need to fully obey God, not partially. His rules are spelled out in the Bible for this reason: to obey. (Ps 119:33)

We do not earn our salvation by the things that we do. However, after we are in the family of God, we want to please God. Obeying him is one way to make God smile.

4) To praise and thank Him

Noah lived a life full of praise and thanksgiving. This pleased God. The very first act that Noah did after surviving the Flood was to offer a sacrifice to God. (Gen 8:20)   After Jesus' sacrifice, animal sacrifice was not necessary. Instead, we are to praise God. (Hebs 13:15) To praise God, not only brings pleasure to Him, but it fills our hearts with joy.

5) To use our abilities

God told Noah to get on with his life; to be "fruitful and increase in number." (Gen 9:1, 3) God loves to watch every detail of our lives. (Ps 37:23) So live your life for God.

God gave to us different gifts. When we use these gifts, we bring joy to God. So, we need to use our gifts to please God.

God also wants us to enjoy His creation. He made us especially for this purpose. We are worshiping God when we do this. (1 Tim 6:17) When we want to please Him, then God smiles, much like a parent would. (2 Cor 5:9) We need to make pleasing God a top priority of our lives.

Point to ponder:

God smiles when I trust him.

Verse to remember:

Ps 147:11

Question to consider:

Since God knows what is best, in what areas of my life do I need to trust him most?