Selfish or Selfless

Psalm 37:4

   NIV

“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”

Delight yourself in the Lord:

I spent many years thinking that “delight myself in the Lord” meant being a good girl and staying happy, and then everything that I desired, wanted, and just had to have, would be mine, no special effort needed, I mean after all I belonged to Jesus didn‘t I. “A selfish praying Christian”, you think? Then as often happens for most people, “time” began to change my way of reasoning and understanding of the weightier (as in more substantial, not a burden) things of life including the scriptures. Delight myself; long to be with, long to know fully, long to have deeper understanding of, wrap myself in, to love more deeply, and on it goes, a living praise song with no end, inexpressible joy of learning and growing while being covered with His love.

He will give you the desires of your heart:
God opened my eyes to this part of the verse in particular; it brought a new maturity when I thought I pretty much knew it all! It was like looking at one of those eye-teasing puzzles, if you stare long enough at the protruding shapes they become convex and the whole scheme of the picture is changed. “And he will give you (me) the desires of your (my) heart!” Again, time stepped in and unveiled a broader scope of this God breathed statement. Surprise to me! Whoa! The scene changed. I am not at all the main subject of this verse, nor are my wants. With an open soul exposed to my Father, selfless desires become the ones that He places within the heart of me. He is giving me the desires that He desires for me to have. What a winning combination, He has desires for me, He gives me those desires and I want them, and now the two of us agree. This is the substance of answered prayer.

Father, you know my heart,

You understand my need,

Fill me with Your desires,

For You are my desire.

Amen

I get real with God and He becomes life to me, and since He always desires my best, He then puts into my heart the wisdom to desire from Him that which He deems best for me. Who would not want God’s best for their lives. What a way to live, delighted and gifted by a Loving Heavenly Father!

Is it wrong to express your desires to the Father?

Is it wrong to desire His best for you?

Do we present our pleas then promise to abide in Him?

Should we consider our request before we make them?