Handling Our Desires

Psalms 37:4 (NIV)
4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

We all have desires.  And we all want the Lord to give us the desires of our heart, just like the verse above says.  This is what makes Psalm 37:4 such an popular verse of Scripture, quoted by many, hoping that the Lord would grant them the desire that they have in their hearts.  But is it that easy?  Does this, and other verses of Scripture that promise to meet our desires mean that any desire we can bring to God and He will answer them?

Sometimes we have to be careful about how we interpret God’s Word.  Many Christians take certain verses that are beneficial for them and bend them to make them suitable for their lives.  But this is not how a Christian is to “use” God’s Word.  Verses of Scripture are not bits and pieces of spiritual “anting-antings” (amulets or lucky charms) that we can use to get what we want.  It is the whole counsel of God’s Word that a Christian must study, and use, for him to live as God wants him to live.

So, how are we to handle our desires?

1.  First, realize that most, if not all, our desires stem from our sinful nature.  And our sinful nature only thinks of one thing – our self.

Romans 8:5 (NIV)
5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

It is not natural for us to think of what God desires, or what God believes to be right for us.  Our natural tendency is to follow what our flesh desires.  And for a Christian this is a danger zone!

Jeremiah 17:9 (NIV)
9 The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

Here is what every Christian should have “tattooed” in their heart – the heart is deceitful.  It makes us think that we need certain things, that there are things in this life that are essential for us, that are good for us.  But the heart deceives us in this area.  We need to be careful that we are not driven by what our hearts tell us what is right or needed, but we are to be lead by what God tells us is right or needed.  This is why the next point is important:

2.  The new birth experience is essential in having good desires.

James 1:17 (NIV)
17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

And for us to discern what is good and perfect for us we need to keep in touch, in fellowship, with the Lord.  When God changes our hearts, He not only softens our hearts to make us hear and understand Him, but He also gives us the Holy Spirit who indwells us.  He is the One who knows who leads us to what His will is.  And when a heart of a person is changed, what happens?

2 Corinthians 5:15 (NIV)
15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

The very main desire of our heart is changed.  Were not talking about desires for things, but the very core desire of our heart is transformed from one that loves self to one that loves God.  We no longer live for ourselves but for Him who died for us.  This, now, is what guides the desires of our hearts – our love for God.  Not our love for things, or for companionship, or for success, or for a better life – but a love for God and His kingdom, His direction, His will.

The next time we have a desire in our hearts, ask yourself these questions:

a.  Am I being lead by my sinful nature, or by the Holy Spirit?  Am I desiring what God wants me to desire, or what the world wants me to desire?  Romans 8:5

b.  Am I being lead by fear, or by faith, trust in my Lord.  Many desires stem from fear – fear for the future, fear of people looking down at us, a fear of not having things.  But we are a people of faith, who should live by faith.  Galatians 2:20

c.  Does my joy and peace in this life depend on my desires, or just on the Lord?

Psalms 73:25-26 (NIV)
25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Our desires will either make or break our Christianity.  Handle with care!