Delighting in the Lord

by Bob Gaudi

“If the Lord delights in a man’s way, He makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with His hand.” –Psalm 37:23-24

My eldest son David is the head of Saint Mark Lutheran School in Kāneʻohe, Hawaii. A few years ago he conceived of the idea of building a new preschool facility on their property. He presented and sold the idea to the school board, calling it an Early Learning Center. Thus began the long journey from concept to reality: architectural plans, permits, securing funding through loans, grants, and collaboration with other partners, and finally construction. The path was an arduous one with many challenges along the way—not the least of which was David’s oversight of the project while continuing his duties as head of the school. Although he had a construction manager, he was still involved with the project on a full-time basis. He had to confront and solve problems almost daily. It was an extremely stressful time for him.

Ultimately, David’s efforts and many sleepless nights were rewarded with completion of the new 11,000 sq. ft. Early Learning Center (ELC). Now licensed to serve 60 students, the facility stands as a shining example of what dedication and focused effort can achieve. The hard work of everyone involved paid off in a big way as the preschool now serves as a starting point where the preschoolers can move right into elementary school. This was truly a win not only for the school, but for the entire town of Kāneʻohe as local families now had another choice of quality Christian education for their children.

David’s original Weeble

Not long after completion of the ELC, Karen and I visited with David’s family in Honolulu and he invited us to tour the facility. During the tour, I noticed an odd-looking toy sitting prominently on his desk and asked him what it was. He told me it was a “Weeble,” and reminded me that he played with Weebles as a child in the early 70’s. I had a faint recollection of the toys, but couldn’t help but ask WHY he kept one on his desk. He explained that “Weebles wobble, but they don’t fall down.” That was the advertising catchphrase coined by J. Mitchell Reed when the toys were first released around 1971. You see, David kept the Weeble on his desk during the trying times of his doctoral studies as well as throughout the preschool planning and construction process. It served as a reminder that he could be like a Weeble—wobbling, bobbing, and weaving but never falling down. Flicking that Weeble with his finger literally helped him get through the tough times, providing encouragement that he could fight on and not fall. It still sits on his desk today.

While reading through the psalms recently, I came to Psalm 37 and stopped with verse 24, feeling compelled to read it again and yet another time. It was then that I remembered the story told in the first three paragraphs above. Psalm 37 is considered a “wisdom” psalm, in which King David contrasts the wicked and the righteous. It also provides a divine promise of upholding us so that we may delight in Him. Verses 23 and 24 make it clear that the Lord upholds the righteous—those He delights in—and will not let them fall. One could say the righteous are like Weebles; they may stumble but won’t fall down. God allows us to stumble from time to time and we all do. But our gracious God always keeps us from falling. He uses our stumbles to teach and empower us to persevere in our journey of sanctification...to press on no matter the stumbling blocks we encounter. Our God enables us through our prayer and study of His Word to fulfill our obligation to grow closer to Him in order that we may truly know and delight in Him.

In his psalms, King David speaks of the trials and tribulations he faced. He too stumbled a lot and always found that God was there to uphold him. David trusted the Lord and knew that the He was his refuge, his rock, his stronghold, and his salvation. He knew God would sustain and deliver him from all tribulation. Even when he erred he knew that God would forgive him when he piously sought restoration.

We too have access to the same God as King David, and through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we have forgiveness. The whole point of this devotional is if we stumble—and we will—like David, we too have redemption. Like Weebles, we may stumble but our risen Lord keeps us from falling; He upholds us with His hand just like David says in Psalm 37. I wonder if Mr. Reed was thinking of Psalm 37 and King David when he coined the catchphrase for the Weebles.

I’ll leave you with two final verses to contemplate:

  • “Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.” –Psalm 55:22

  • “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me [Jesus].”
    –John 14:1

Heavenly Father, we ask You to direct our steps and keep us on the path to righteousness. Fill us with Your Holy Spirit. Strengthen us to seek Your will so as to honor and glorify You through loving obedience with repentant hearts. Support us when we stumble and restore us when we come to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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