The desires of the heart gets us into lots of trouble, for the desires encompass a wide range of emotional, psychological and spiritual yearnings. The bible says delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart, Psalm 37:4. What are your desires?
Deadly Desires of the Heart
The first reading of this promise sounds wonderful, however, there should be a higher standard ruling the life of the believer, which Jesus prayed. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven, Matthew 6:10. Do our desires line up with what God wants for our life, or are we set on what we want?
Adam was perfect in all his ways until he allowed the desires of his heart to rule his actions. Instead of trusting God, Adam gave into the temptation to go along with his wife and ate of the forbidden fruit, Genesis 3. God gave Adam clear instructions that if he ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil it would result in death, Genesis 2:16. Adam would have passed this command onto Eve, but she was beguiled by the serpent.
The desires of the heart lead to destruction when they are centred on the wrong things. Sin entered the entire human race through Adam’s actions and the way to God was barred until Jesus Christ paid the ransom price and redeemed fallen men.
What You Think In Your Heart
Solomon wrote, Do not eat the bread of a selfish man or desire his delicacies. For as he thinks within himself, so he is, Proverbs 23:6,7. What we desire in our heart gives our life purpose and meaning. It is the desires of the heart that drives what we do, what we pursue and what we avoid. Our desires include our aspirations and personal goals, which are influenced by those around us.
Words have the creative power to build people up or to bring them down. The things that are spoken to us become embedded in our heart and influence what we become. Tell a child enough times he or she is a failure and that is what they will become. Are your desires uplifting, or will they lead to your destruction?
Desire Decides Your Eternal Destiny
If you become what you are in your heart, then your desire ultimately decides your eternal destiny.
God gave man a free will. We are free to accept God’s great gift of salvation, Ephesians 2:8, or reject Him and all He stands for. If the desires of our heart are centred on self then that is what we will be. Self-centred people who want their own way all the time. Worse still, if we remain an unrepentant sinner we have an eternal destiny waiting for us, that is total separation from God.
We can choose to yield our self-will to the merciful hand of a loving Heavenly Father who created man to show His glory and be in covenantal relationship with Him. He is the One who wants only the best for us, in whatever that entails. The choice is ours.
The deep desires of our heart will decide where we will spend eternity. Will can be in God’s awesome presence, or be eternally separated from God. The choice is ours, based on the desires of our heart.
Followers of Christ
There are many people around the world who have accepted Christ as their Saviour but still live self-centred lives. They are saved but they do not follow Christ with their whole heart. Only the few are prepared to be a modern-day Abraham and live God’s way.
We are to live by the faith of the Son of God who loved us and gave Himself up for us, Galatians 2:20. Our heart’s desire should be to live a life that is pleasing to the Great I Am That I Am, Exodus 3:3.
The Ultimate Test
Abraham longed for the son of promise. About twenty years after the true son was finally born, God tested Abraham and told him to go to Mount Moriah and offer Isaac up as a burnt offering.
For three days they journeyed, then Abraham told the men with him, Stay here and we will worship and return to you, Genesis 21:5. Human sacrifice was not a new idea to Abraham, for it was done in the land that Abraham had grown up in. However, to actually kill the son he had longed for, drove a knife deep into his own heart. However, Abraham had a choice to obey, or disobey God.
Abraham tied up Isaac and laid him on the altar. He took the knife to slay his son, fully believing that God would provide, even if it meant the death and resurrection of his only son.
At that moment an angel of the Lord stopped Abraham, stating that Abraham had honoured God since he had not withheld his only son. We know Abraham’s test pointed to the only begotten Son being sacrificed on Calvary. That is faith that is almost beyond our human comprehension. It’s not the amount of faith we have, but who we have faith in.
Where is Our Faith
Where is our faith when it comes to the deepest desires of our heart? Do we believe God enough to give up our position in the community, our ministry, our ambitions, and even our own family? God has a greater love for our family than we do.
God will honour the desires of your heart, but where is your true heart? Do you want God’s will in your life, more than you want our own desires? Are you thirsty for His presence?
Until we reach the place where our desires are totally yielded to the God of the universe, we will never know what it was to walk the way Abraham walked with God.
Another Helper
The major difference between Abraham and us is that we have a precious promise that Jesus gave. If anyone loves Me he will keep my word and My father will love him and We will come to him and make Our abode with him, John 14:23.
Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, came to dwell among men who beat Him and hung Him on a cruel wooden cross. The grave could not hold Him and Jesus rose again, a victorious, glorious Saviour.
Jesus told His disciples that He would ascend back to heaven. I will ask the Father and He will give you another Helper that He may be with you forever, that is the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive, because it does not see Him, or know Him. But you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you, John 14:16,17.
Abraham knew God, but we have God dwelling in us. We can know as much of God as we allow our heart’s desires to be yielded to Him. The yielded life is one that is in filled by the Spirit of God, led by the Spirit of God and empowered by the Spirit of God.
The Desires of Your Heart
God will give you the desires of your heart, Psalm 37:4 but you need to check what those deep desires are. Do they give glory to God, or are they the glory of self? Are you willing to walk the way Abraham did and trust God completely? Do you believe that He will take you through every fiery trial and bring you out the other side victorious?
However, the choice is ever yours. What you choose here is what you will be in eternity. Will you trust God, the great I Am That I Am, Exodus 3:14, in every area of your life? Will you yield everything to Him? What are the deepest desires of your heart for God will grant them?
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