An Unexpected Word for 2025

the "delight" experiment

photo credit: nadine wuchenauer

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

I’ve been struggling with my health again the past few months, and I’ve spent a lot of time frustrated with having to be “unproductive”.

One day in December, as I lay dead exhausted on the couch once again, I prayed, “God, I’m spending a lot of time here. How do I rest well¹?” Lately I’ve been learning to listen during prayer, instead of just saying what I want to say and moving on to some other thought train or activity. So I paused and waited a few minutes, my eyes drifting around the room.

After a few moments, as my eyes passed over my very favorite book series on the bookshelf, I heard the word “DELIGHT”.

I’ve never been a very fun or chill person. I resist fun. Fun doesn’t even sound like fun most of the time, it sounds like a waste of time. My tendency is to be productivity-oriented, and I must confess I have often harshly judged people who enjoyed hobbies or didn’t take their work as seriously as I did because they “weren’t making the most of their time”. You can probably imagine that with that mindset, being varying levels of incapacitated for the past ten years has been very, very hard for me.

And maybe it’s just me, but I’m not sure I’ve ever really thought that living a life with Jesus could be fun or enjoyable. Sure we’re supposed to like it, but… While the Bible may talk about delight and joy and freedom in Christ, those concepts have often felt very incongruent with my experience and things I’ve heard and read in (mostly my past) Christian circles². Whether it was from direct words I heard or things I inferred too much from, somehow over the years I ended up with the subconscious belief that if you’re following Jesus right, it will be hard and painful.

And I’ve often operated that way, and quite frankly, been pretty miserable inside because of it.

Delight. Really? Me?

When I look back over the past year, I can see several clear signposts of God at work in me, preparing me to be open to the idea that maybe, just maybe, life with Him (and life in general) can be a joyful thing, filled with fun and… delight.

delight

noun: a high degree of gratification or pleasure; joy; extreme satisfaction; something that gives great pleasure

verb: to take great pleasure; to give keen enjoyment; to give joy or satisfaction to

synonyms: joy; treasure; treat; feast; relief; pleasure; fun

antonyms: dissatisfaction; discontent; misery; sadness; sorrow; unhappiness; displeasure

What if we can delight in the good things in life, even when hard and bad are sitting next to us on the couch?

A few days ago, I realized I think “delight” is my word for 2025.

I picked a book on the topic, “Delighting In Jesus” by Asharitah Ciuciu, to help guide my journey (it’s fantastic by the way).

And I made a loose plan (because some of us have to plan to have fun or it will never happen)- an intentional rest day each week that’s free from work and filled with restful and fun things, more scripture and times of quiet and less academic study and hiding behind my intellect. And trying some new things like watercolors.

As much as this idea of intentionally trying to enjoy life more feels refreshing, crowding in quick behind this glimmer of hope are the doubts-

“A whole year of focusing on enjoyment? Isn’t that a little excessive?”

“What if you’re wrong and you waste this time?”

“Does God really endorse enjoying things, or is the joy and delight in the Bible more about an angels-strumming-harps, it-doesn’t-actually-feel-like-joy-to-us kind of joy?”

But I keep coming back to the psalms…

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

I’m always reluctant to write from the miry middle, because putting words out there before you’re sure of them feels risky. But I’m going out on a limb before I’ve arrived at a firm conclusion: I have hope that it is true that God is the source of all delight, and He is pleased when we enjoy both Him and the things He’s created, and I have hope that I’ll like life a lot better as I allow myself to delight in Him and the good things in His world.

Maybe next month I’ll share some reflections on this process so far and something(s?) that’s bringing me delight.³

Do you have a word of the year? I’d love to hear it and what it means for you! ⁴

1. Tell me you’re an overachiever without telling me you’re an overachiever… *eye roll at myself*

2. I especially got this vibe in the Reformed/Calvinist circles I’ve been a part of. The fatalistic undercurrent and focus on how wretched we are heavily contributed to my twisted ideas about God, myself, and what it means to follow Christ.

3. Or maybe I won’t share anything, it remains to be seen. Who knows!

4. I have a complicated relationship with words of the year, sometimes if something really fits I go for it, often times I skip it. Don’t let me peer pressure you into something that’s not for you!