Name a Star

He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.

His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man, but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.

Psalm 147

Have you ever heard of those services that let you name a star? You give them $20 and they enter your star name into the "official star registry." So, basically you name a star after your girlfriend thinking it will really impress her, and then she looks at you like you're an idiot when you give her the "authentic certificate." Not that I'm speaking from experience or anything...

I can just imagine God having a conversation with some poor schlub when he gets to heaven. "Hey, Lance, so you know that star isn't named 'Stacy's Hot' right? I actually named that star a long time ago because... I made it. You don't really get to go around naming things that other people created. You get that right?" 

It's surprising the things we do to try to impress someone. We guys especially make idiots of ourselves trying to impress girls, but what about the things we do to try to impress God?  I think our attempts at impressing Him are often met with the same disappointment that those "authentic certificates" from the star registry are. I can just see God looking at me with a confused look on His face saying "You thought I would like that???"

It turns out that the things God takes pleasure in are not often talked about in our churches or small group Bible studies. According to Psalm 147:11 God takes pleasure in those who fear Him and in those who hope (or wait) on His steadfast love. These are the gifts God wants from us. He wants us to understand His authority and fear the awful consequences of rebelling against Him. This type of fear is proper for those who truly understand how big and great God is. This fear of God's wrath will keep us far from sin and enable us to serve Him faithfully. God also wants us to understand that He is our only hope of escape from the difficult circumstances in our lives. We fix our hope on Him by waiting patiently on Him even in the midst of our suffering.

So don't try to impress God by what you wear to church or by pretending to be better than you are or even by getting that cool new Christian tattoo. He sees through all of that and see your heart. Give Him what He wants. Fear Him and place your hope in Him alone.