Desires of Your Heart

When you are alone, what is it that you think about?  Maybe you're driving in your car or you are sitting in the living room late at night all by yourself, what do you think about? What are your inner most desires? Do they have to do with yourself? Or with God?

Here are five Bible verses. Read them through and then think about their meaning.

15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments." - John 14:15

^"30 He must increase, but I must decrease." - John 3:30

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” - Luke 10:27

"Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love." - 1 John 4:8

³⁴ “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵ By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” - John 13:34-35

After reading those five verses, what is it do you think that God wants from us? What should be OUR desire? God wants us to love Him and to love others. That's pretty simple. And in our loving others, God will be made known. So what should be the desire of our hearts?

Should the desires of our hearts have anything to do with us? Read that last verse over again. The one about loving God and loving others. Are WE in there anywhere?

Now read this verse.

^"4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart." - Psalm 37:4

If our desire is to love God and to love others, God WILL give us the desires of our hearts. And that is to love and to be loved.

I volunteer at a food pantry each month. I have gotten quite close with many of those who come for food. I love them. In volunteering, people demonstrate their love for others, by becoming less.

A woman standing in line looked sad yesterday so I asked her how she was. She said, "It's been a rough week."

"What's wrong?" I asked. She proceeded to tell me how her last remaining child in the area had moved to Colorado and that she was left all alone.

How should I have responded do you think? What could I have done to demonstrate my love for God in this situation? Well, I asked her, "May I pray for you?" She nodded.

The "desire of my heart" was to love others and to love God. I demonstrated my love for God by obeying His commands. I showed my love for my friend by praying for her and taking her to God in prayer. And in return God gave me the desires of my heart - to be loved by my friend and to be loved by my God.

Has God given you the desires of your heart? He will. As long as your desires have nothing to do with you and have everything to do with Him. HE must increase. WE must decrease.

How will we love each other today? How will we demonstrate that love so that God gets the glory? If we can do that, God will give us exactly what we want. And that is an amazing feeling.

 

John7:17 Challenge

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus - Nichole Nordeman