“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” (Revelation 4:11)
The great lie is that our life is better left in our own hands rather than in God’s. The thinking is that every person knows what they want. They imagine what will bring them pleasure. They know best what would make them happy. If so, why then would anyone surrender the right to find their own way in the world to anyone else – including God?
If God even enters the picture, to this way of thinking, He is simply there to promote our dreams and affirm the choices we make. After all, if He is our Heavenly Father, wouldn’t He want us to be happy, like every loving parent wishes their child to be? But such an idea is quite contrary to the revelation of God given us in scripture. In fact, God has created us not so we can pursue our pleasure, and order our lives as we see fit; He has created us for His pleasure, and He calls us to discover and walk in what He calls good.
It is far from the truth that if we are happy, God is happy. He is not our heavenly cheerleader; our biggest supporter; our smiling, approving parent whatever path we choose to take. He is our Creator, who would shape and make us into the person He wants us to be. In order for that to happen, He must be in control. We must surrender our “freedom” to be and do what we think will make us happy.
Solomon once did whatever he thought would be fulfilling. After he spent his life chasing after vanity, he had this to say to every young person embarking on life’s journey:
“Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment. Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity” (Ecclesiastes 11:9,10)
In the end, following our heart is a recipe for regret and sorrow, not happiness. God created us for something better than we could ever imagine for ourselves. He created us for Himself. He created us to bring Him pleasure. Find out what His will is for your life, and do it. You won’t regret it.