And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

Hebrews 11:6

There are few things as fulfilling and validating as a child than to know that we’ve made our daddy proud or happy. It’s been a minute since I could be properly called a child, but I still absolutely love it when I can bring a smile to my daddy’s face. It’s a unique sense of fulfillment to know that our presence and relationship make our fathers happy.

Unfortunately in a broken world, we don’t all get to experience that sense of fulfillment and joy from our earthly fathers. Some are lost when we are too young to remember. Some just don’t know how to bless their children in this way. This can be incredibly hurtful, but even for those who have experienced this pain and disappointment, there is an opportunity to find an even deeper sense of fulfillment from our Heavenly Father.

So how do we find fulfillment and joy in pleasing God? At first glance, today’s verse seems somewhat like an unsatisfying Sunday-school answer. By having faith…but there’s a little more to it than that. 

The first part of the verse states that faith is essential to pleasing God. The second part lays out faith in two parts. 

The first part of faith is rather obvious—you have to believe God exists. It’s pretty hard to please someone if you don’t actually think they’re there. The second part goes a little deeper. Not only do we have to believe that God exists, but we also have to believe that He is “a rewarder of those who seek Him.” 

This phrase speaks to our Father’s goodness. He doesn’t ignore our bids for affection. He doesn’t say He’s too busy. He doesn’t tell us to leave Him alone. If we believe in who He says He is, He will meet us there with the full power of His love.

Something is missing though. It’s quite possible to believe God exists and is good and still not please Him. Just like James pointed out, I’m pretty sure the demons know this about God, but I would guess they’re not doing a whole lot that pleases God. 

To find the missing piece we need to back up a bit. This verse is found in the Faith Hall of Fame—Hebrews 11—where the writer lists the heroes of the faith and how they demonstrated that faith. 

This verse happens to come right after the verse dedicated to the faith-hero Enoch. We’re told that because of Enoch’s faith, he was taken up into Heaven and never died. It’s a quick snippet, but we get a little more detail in Genesis 5 where the writer lists the descendents of Adam. It’s a good old-fashioned genealogy and right in the middle it says this:

“Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.” (Genesis 5:21-24)

For the most part, the account of Enoch’s life follows the same pattern as the other men in the genealogy, but one thing is different—where the author says that everyone else lived a certain number of years, for Enoch he uses the word halak. Halak means to walk with either literally or in a close relationship with.

That’s the missing piece. To please God, we need to believe that He is real and good to the point of action. Our Heavenly Father is an Abba who wants us to draw close and spend time with Him in relationship.

This idea shines a whole new light on spiritual disciplines. If most of us are honest, these can sometimes feel more like a chore than a relationship, so I want to challenge you (and myself) a little bit here. 

When was the last time you opened your Bible and invited you Heavenly Father to come join you on the couch as you read? When was the last time you approached God in prayer as if you were tugging on your Father’s pant leg or crawling into His lap so you could talk to Him? It’s a simple change of mindset when we approach our relationship with God, but I can’t help imagining a huge Heavenly grin on His face as He leans in to meet us.