“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)
Working in a prayer center has been interesting. My eyes have been opened on more than one occasion to the frail state of man, and the absolute need for God. People call in for various things; financial blessing, healing, restoration of relationships, protection, peace, etc. They are bogged down by the things in life that just aren't going according to plan for them. They are fearful, angry, worried, hurting, sick, and confused. More often than not, some people call in for prayer, but they really don't want prayer. What they really want is for God to do things their way, quickly. It is for these people I am deeply burdened for. The fact is, God is Jehovah Jireh, The Lord provides. He is able to provide all that we need, this is the truth, however, somewhere along the lines people have become confused about WHO is really in control.
We all know who Santa Claus is. (Ho-Ho-Ho, Merry Christmas- big guy, white beard, red suit, reindeer, jolly) When the Christmas season arrives, children line up to sit on his lap and tell him what they want for Christmas, and Santa, (or the child's parents) the generous giver that he is, provides the child with exactly what they wanted. It works like a charm! Get yourself a Genie and you get three wishes to have anything that you want. Just request it and it is yours, no questions asked. It works like magic. Then you have an ATM machine. Need cash? Go to the ATM machine and request it (only if you have it) and you will receive it (again, only if it is there). In each of these scenarios, you are ultimately the one who is in control of what you receive. It's glorious! Here's the thing, God is NOT Santa Claus, even though he desires to bless his children with good gifts. God is NOT a genie. His supernatural power and authority go far beyond anything a genie could grant. God is not a never ending ATM. You can only get what you put in.
So when you see the verse, “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart” That does not mean that God will give you everything that you want, but he will give you everything you need. Sure God loves to bless his children with gifts, and he is far more generous than any Santa Claus, genie, or ATM could be, but God is not here to be at our beckon call. We are not in control of him. So, what does this passage mean? To start, let's take a look at Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, They are plans for good and not for disaster (to prosper and not to harm), to give you a future and a hope.”
The truth is that God does have specific plans for each one of his children. He has plans for you. He loves you, but to receive his love, fully (and I'm not saying he doesn't love you if you don't accept it) you must do something with that knowledge. It is not merely enough to know it, you must do something with it in order for it to really be effective in your life. To see his plans fully, you must do something with the knowledge that he has plans for you, and that's trust him.
There was a point in my life where the mere mention of this verse angered me so much because everyone was quoting it to me in one of the most desperate times of my life. I became angry because God wasn't doing things my way, and he certainly wasn't giving me what I wanted. I remember feeling convicted that God's Word was making me so vehemently angry so I went to talk to my Pastor about it. Pastor Heath, looked at me, and with some of the most compassion I have ever felt expressed towards me said, “I hate it when people only quote a portion of scripture and leave out some of the most important parts.” He explained to me that ,in context, the people of Israel were entering a period of 77 years of adversity. God wanted to fill them with the hope that he had a plan for it, that he loved them, he would be there, and that everything would be okay. Jeremiah 29:12-14 continues,
“In those days, when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. I will be found by you, says the Lord. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you, and bring you home again to your own land.”
As Pastor Heath read this, I began to weep, even more than I already was because it became clear to me, that yes, God had plans for me, and they are good plans, and they are plans to help me, BUT I needed to be seeking Him. There was something that I needed to do. I needed to do my part, and I was not. I wanted God to come in and rescue me without my having to do anything, but that is just not the way a real genuine relationship with the Lord works. It takes time. It takes sacrifice. You must give all that you have and all that you are to receive all that HE has for you. You must hold nothing back and give to God everything you have, your burdens, your possessions, your life and then watch him work.
This is what delighting in the Lord really is. Keeping your eyes fixed on Him, letting Him have full control, and trusting that He has your best interest in mind because he always does. God is not oblivious to your needs. He is not unaware of the things you long for, but ultimately he desires for you to make him your first priority. God is a jealous God and he wants all of you, even those parts that are not perfect, even those parts that are sinful. God wants ALL of you. When you delight yourself in the Lord, the desires that are in your heart start to change to reflect the ones that he has for your life. They change because trusting in the Lord, and depending on the Lord fully and completely, changes you.
"Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust Him and he will help you." (Psalm 37:5)
God wants to help you, but he wants you to trust him more. He wants to bless you, but he wants you to seek Him more. I firmly believe that God knows what we want, he knows what we need, but he would much rather help us get to the root cause of the problem, and help us deal with that wound and that area of our life than to slap a band-aid on the problem and allow us to walk further away from him and further into darkness. Struggling with your finances? Maybe God wants to teach you how to budget and handle a small amount of money, trusting in Him for your daily bread, before he blesses you with the income you want. Being a good steward of what you have is important and wise. Struggling with feeling alone? Perhaps God wants you to get to know Him and fully depend on him before he sends someone in your life to marry. Marriage is a serious commitment. It takes a lot of work. You are going to need God's help, so better get to know where and who your help comes from first.
Look, I know first hand that life is tough and I don't have all the answers, but I know who does. I am not about to explain away anything you've experienced or are experiencing and I wont explain away or dismiss your pain. God knows what you are going through. The truth is, God can and does perform miracles daily and it rains on the just and the unjust alike. He loves you and nothing in all the earth can ever take that away from you.
The financial burdens you face, the fact that you want to be married and are still painfully single, the illness you are struggling with, the addiction you just can't seem to beat, and the loved one lost too soon that you still grieve, are in no way, shape, or form, a reflection of how much God loves you. If you have a healthy bank account, a wonderful job, a beautiful family, and perfect health, that is in no way, shape, or form, a reflection of how much God loves you. God's love isn't based on what you have or don't have. His love for you is based solely on who he is. God is love. He loves you, regardless of whether or not you choose to love him. He wants you to whole and healed, more than he wants to give you all those things you wish you had.
"The Lord is with you, he is mighty to save. He delights in you with gladness. With his love he calms all of your fears. He rejoices over you with joyful songs." (Zephaniah 3:17)
The Lord delights in YOU. (just as you are) The question is, are you willing to delight yourself in the Lord?
No comments:
Post a Comment