Jesus is the only person who could ever say, “I always do the things that are pleasing to him.” There has only been one person who lived a perfect, sinless life. The rest of us can say, “I make every effort to do the things that are pleasing to God.”

Imagine living a perfect life with no sin! It would be wonderful to end each day with zero regrets. Pleasing God is an imperfect goal for all of us this side of heaven. But Jesus taught us the key to leading a life that pleases God. He said, “He who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone.”

Detecting when we have strayed from our walk with the Lord is easy. A darkness creeps into our spiritual lives and impacts our moods and actions. We worry about things we cannot change. We can become angry, less patient, and more judgmental of others. We become motivated by selfish desires or plans rather than the compassionate love of God.

One of the markers of spiritual maturity is recognizing the darkness and knowing you need to run back into the presence of light. Jesus said he was the “light of the world” (John 8:12), and he wants to be the light in our lives.

Loneliness is an increasing sickness in our culture. The statistics are clear, and experts talk about the dangers of living that way. So many in our culture have decided there is no God, and therefore they do not seek God. 

As Christians, we know the value of dwelling in God’s presence. We are a prayer away from knowing we are “not alone.” We trust God’s word and know that if we walk with God, we can please him. God’s pleasure is our joy! 

None of us will ever be able to repeat the words of Christ, saying, “I always do the things that are pleasing to him.” But we can aim at the goal of saying, “I always try” to do that. Wisdom is pleasing God. If we seek God’s wisdom, we seek to please God and dwell in his presence. Christians are “the light of the world” too (Matthew 5:14). Let’s allow his light to radiate through us to a culture becoming increasingly accustomed to the darkness.