Driving our Desires

“Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4

A few days ago, as I was walking in a neighborhood, I began thinking about how long it has been since God promised to grant me one of my deepest desires - I am at 16 years and counting. Sixteen years is a long time to want and an eternity to wait. I began asking God why it was taking so long. I have complete belief that it is going to happen and I have surrendered any ideas as to how it will happen. I believe living in the when is tougher because the belief is so strong in the fulfillment of the promise. I love the way God deals with me and it happens frequently. He sends an image into my mind that connects my question to His answer. On this day the image that came to mind was a child driving a toy car into real traffic. I couldn’t wait to rest from my walk and google that image.

I know that God was showing me that while we desire the fruit of miracles and promises, sometimes we are just not ready for the fulfillment. Just as we would never give our 5-year-old the keys to our car, God is not going to give in to our desires before we have grown in spiritual maturity. In our verse we should notice that the desires of our heart are the overflow of our devotion to Him. In taking delight in God, our desires will ultimately shift to align to His desires for us which will always be better than what we can ever imagine.

God places desires in our hearts and we are encouraged to dream and hope for those desires. But our desires must hold a back seat to our devotion to the Lord. We must allow Him to determine the circumstances and the timing of everything that flows into our lives. Although I am 60 years old with wrinkles and puffy eyes, there are times that God still sees me with a pixie cut, baby teeth, and a toddler faith. So as I sit here working towards year 17, I will trust a Father who knows me best and desires for me to receive His best...He wants the same for you.