Devotionals
Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.
Many of us have prayed this passage before, myself included. We come to a point where we have a solid relationship with the Lord, and we are regularly delighted at how He manifests His presence in our lives. We witness prayers being answered, we delight in praise and worship, and we sense His Holy Spirit leading our lives. We are walking out the Christian faith, and it is nothing short of miraculous. Now that we’re delighted with the Lord, we’re ready for the payoff.
When we read the Psalm, it seems to be an “if-then” statement. In computer programming, the “if-then” statement is used to process input from the user. IF the data meets certain criteria, THEN it is operated on in a prescribed way. In this case, the data is our relationship with Christ. IF our relationship with Him is thriving such that we are delighting in its various aspects, THEN He will grant the desires of our heart. Correct? I am not so sure that is an accurate assessment of this scripture, although it would seem to be the obvious one.
The condition part of the promise can be taken literally, i.e. the IF statement. Before the promise (giving the desires of the heart) can be kept, we have to be in a healthy relationship with our Lord and Savior. However, based upon His character and what we know of His promises, doesn’t He always seek to give us what is best for us, even when we don’t know what it is? What are the typical desires of the human heart, and are they based upon what is best for us, or what we most want for ourselves?
Jeremiah 17:9 tells us about the wickedness of the natural man’s heart, and how rotten it is to the core. Even after we know Jesus, our sinful nature leads us into selfish thinking. Our heart’s desire may well be a better job, a new car, a place of position in the church, a specific partner for a friend or child, or even a new home. These all seem harmless enough. But unless what we desire is aligned with God’s will, He can not give it to us - and only He can know what is best for us in the long run.
Therefore, I like to think of this scripture in a different way. He will give us “the right desires in our heart”. In other words, He isn’t going to grant our dearest fantasies just because we love him – that would be like buying your children a pound of candy each day and allowing them to consume it all at once. Sure, they would love it and they’d love you for doing it – but it would not be what is best for them. Instead, we teach them to discern what is best for them, which is what God is doing with us as we are sanctified in relationship with Him. In the meantime, He is planting inside of our hearts the desires that He wants us to have – the desire to love others more and better, a healthy desire for fellowship with other Christians, the desire to praise and worship Him corporately, increased desire to spend time in prayer, and a deep desire to study His Word. When we find ourselves wanting these things more than anything else, we know that our prayers for the promise in this verse have come true.
Dear Lord, plant in my heart the desires you would most like me to have. Help me to trust you more and more each day with my life, my future, my decision, and my desires. Give me the Godly desires of a heart surrendered to your Will. In the name of Jesus Christ, my savior and redeemer, AMEN.
PLEASE ENCOURAGE AUTHOR BELOW LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE
Reader Count & Comments
Date
The opinions expressed by authors do not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com. This is especially true with articles that
deal with personal healthcare and prophecy. We encourage the reader to make their own decision in consultation with God, His Word, and others as needed.
This article has been read 354 times < Previous | Next >
Read more articles by Korie Carter or search for other articles by topic below.
This article has been read 354 times < Previous | Next >
Search for articles on: (e.g. creation; holiness etc.)
Read more by clicking on a link:Free Reprints
Main Site Articles
Most Read Articles
Highly Acclaimed Challenge Articles.
New Release Christian Books for Free for a Simple Review.
NEW - Surprise Me With an Article - Click here for a random URL
God is Not Against You - He Came on an All Out Rescue Mission to Save You
...in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them... 2 Cor 5:19
Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Acts 13:38
LEARN & TRUST JESUS HERE
FaithWriters offers Christian reading material for Christian readers. We offer Christian articles, Christian fiction, Christian non-fiction, Christian Bible studies, Christian poems, Christian articles for sale, free use Christian articles, Christian living articles, New Covenant Christian Bible Studies, Christian magazine articles and new Christian articles. We write for Jesus about God, the Bible, salvation, prayer and the word of God.