I teach Sunday School, and I’ve been observing and appreciating the charm (one meaning of that word is the power or quality of giving delight) that our Sunday School students express. There was the cartwheel after Sunday School ended; the second grader singing the hymns at the top of his lungs (and in tune!); the high schooler’s recounting of the touchdown pass he caught. Each pupil came with a showing and giving of delight.
Considering the challenges that face individuals and the world as a whole, it’s important to remember that to give pure delight, or to receive it, is a natural outcome of our relationship to God, of our actual nature as His spiritual image, His expression. Man, the image of God, includes the quality of joy. So regardless of how dark things appear at times, or how difficult the way forward may seem, our sense of pure delight is an indestructible characteristic of what we really are, and it can be recognized and expressed, even in bleak circumstances. This isn’t to disregard what may need healing in our lives or worldwide. Instead, God-derived delight promotes healing by helping bring to light the harmony of spiritual reality in everyday life.
Our sense of pure delight is an indestructible characteristic of what we really are.
