Pleasing God

Asa did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight, as his ancestor David had done. [1 Kings 15.11]

I suppose, if nothing else was known about a person except the statement above, it would be enough!

Having attended a funeral lately, I am once again reminded that there is no greater testimony than that a person "did what was pleasing in the Lord's sight..." When a life is reduced to its most basic value, it always comes down to right or wrong.

How would it simplify our lives if we purposed to eliminate the noise and confusion of careers, social status, and possessions, and instead, focused on doing what is pleasing on the Lord's sight? It might be worth considering that doing what is pleasing to the Lord is first accomplished in the general sense before specifics really even matter.

It amazes me how getting caught up in the Lord's specific will tends to distract me from remaining true to His general will (or, my simply striving to be pleasing in His sight in the general sense). It is not a matter of gross sin... unless of course, doubt and worry are viewed as gross sin - which they actually are in God's sight. I should not allow myself to become worried or depressed in the absence of specific direction from God when I have all the Bible telling me that I am to love and trust God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. Sometimes it is quite enough to simply purge (and keep purged) Godless things from my life and the areas I am responsible for.

Father, I want to please You in all my life - general and specific. Help me however to avoid becoming so distracted in seeking Your specific will that I fall into faithlessness and doubt in Your general will.