Richard Baxter, in A Christian Directory (Ligonier, 1990), page 140, lists seven benefits of looking by faith to the Lord, as to no other, for our deepest delight. Updating the language a little:
1. Delight in God will prove that we know him and love him and that we are prepared for his kingdom, for all who delight in him shall enjoy him.
2. Prosperity, that is, the small addition of earthly things, will not easily corrupt us or transport us.
3. Adversity, that is, the withholding of earthly delights, will not excessively grieve us or easily deject us.
4. We will receive more profit from a sermon or book or conversation that we delight in than other people, who don’t delight in them, will receive from many such opportunities.
5. All our service will be sweet to ourselves and acceptable to God; if we delight in him, he certainly delights in us.
6. We will have a continual feast within, to sweeten all the crosses of our lives and to provide us with joy greater than our sorrow in our saddest condition.
7. When we delight in God, our created pleasures will be sanctified to us and warranted in their proper place, which in other people become idolatrous and corrupt.
There is nothing in God we need to filter out, brace ourselves against, or worry about. He is our true and whole happiness.
