Enjoying God

"For who can eat and who can have enjoyment without Him?"
-Ecclesiastes 2:25
      Today I played soccer with friends from my church as we often do on Sundays. I had a good time playing even though I am now quite tired and sore. Later in the day, I was cleaning the bathroom in my house. Like many people, I do not enjoy cleaning at all, especially when I have to clean the bathroom. As I was cleaning the bathroom, a thought came into my head. Why do I enjoy playing sports but I don't enjoy cleaning? That sounds like a weird and foolish question to ask, but it got me thinking.
      Why don't I enjoy doing chores? They're tedious and require time and effort, and I often don't feel like doing them. However, I do like having a clean house. I'm sure many (if not all) people would prefer to live in a clean house than a dirty one. So why do we dislike cleaning our house so much? I think it's because we don't like the process of actually having to work at cleaning and possibly getting ourselves dirty. We like the result, but we don't like the process.
      So why do I enjoy sports? First off, I want to establish the fact that I am a very competitive person when it comes to sports. I love winning and I don't like to lose. Despite this fact, I enjoy sports whether I win or lose. Of course, I am a lot happier if I win, but regardless of whether I win or not I still enjoy playing. The reason I like sports so much is because I like the actual process of playing a sport. I like running, jumping, defending, and competing. This is why I can enjoy sports regardless of the result.
      What is the point I'm making here? The point is that it is much easier to do something if you can enjoy the process as well as the result. The reason I don't like cleaning is because although we like the result we don't enjoy the process. The reason I enjoy playing sports is because I enjoy the process of playing regardless of the result. Playing to win is just another way to motivate me to play harder and enjoy myself more.
      I believe the reason I find it difficult to spend time with God is because I don't enjoy the process. I understand the result of spending time with Him is desirable, but I don't find the actually process of it appealing. I believe that this is why many people struggle to maintain a close relationship with God. We think that spending time with God is tedious and requires effort, and we often don't feel like taking that time to spend with Him. I think in order for us to really grow close to God, we need to learn to enjoy the process of knowing Him.
      Think of your friends; you spend time with them because you like being with them. You don't spend time with them simply because you can gain something from your friendship; you do it because you enjoy the process of being with them. We have to learn to enjoy God in the same way. We shouldn't think of spending time with God as some way we can gain something from Him. We should think of it as a way to enjoy Him. Growing in a relationship with God is much easier if we can learn to enjoy knowing Him. And really, how hard can it be? God loves us, He adores us, He cares for us, and lastly, He enjoys being with us.
-Smart