Scripture
Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. Ephesians 4:10

Observation
It isn’t easy to know what pleases God and what offends him because not all of God’s judgments come immediately. Because consequences can often be delayed we can skip along with the notion that God is okay with whatever we do.

But not so. If we know anything about the way God works, he takes his time. He lets the sins of the wicked reach their “full measure” before taking action. He told Abraham it would be a wait of over 400 years before he would deal with his enemies. Some bad guys never get their comeuppance because not all rewards and punishments come in this life.

It is not enough to be led by a life of consequences because they don’t come quickly enough. This is why we have the Bible. This is why we have the Holy Spirit. It sounds simple but the moment by moment inquiry of the Lord to know what pleases him is often forgotten.

Application
I need to be careful to determine what pleases the Lord. If I want a life with his favor I need to have the upward glance with just about everything.

Prayer
Father, help me to pray reflexively this prayer, “What would please you?” Amen.