What Are the Desires of Your Heart?

Lately I've been reflecting on Psalm 37:4, which says, "Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." Contrary to what the Word-Faith false teachers may tell me, this is not a promise that God will grant me health, wealth, and whatever else I want in life.

I also know that this verse is not a cryptic statement that in some twisted way means that God will not grant me the desires of my heart. He will. But I must first ask myself what it is I desire and why. I may think that promotion, new car, and bigger house may help my Christian walk, but perhaps they will only hinder it. Maybe I am allowing the material trappings of this world to divert my attention from the Source of all things (which is more likely the case).

What, then, does the psalmist mean? If I truly delight myself in the Lord, then my desires will coincide with God's, and he will give me the desires of my heart according to his good and perfect will. In the end the focus will be on God, not on me.

Why Climb the Bible's Mount Everest?

Because it's there.

Desiring God Blog's David Mathis is referring to Romans 8:32: "He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" He writes:

At the center of God's magnificent Himalayan promises is his pledge to work all things -- especially life's most difficult things -- for the good of his people (verses 28-30; 35-39). These promises are so huge that they are hard to believe.

Is God really working all my worst circumstances for my good? Yes! That's what Romans 8:32 is saying. And it's doing so by reasoning from the gospel to God's goodness in all things.

Here's how it works. First, Paul recounts the gospel: "[God] did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all..." God gave his Son for us sinners. That's the good news -- the central truth of Christianity. This is what we believe to be saved, and this is what we keep believing to stay saved.

Then Paul reasons from this gospel to God's goodness toward us in all our deepest pain: "...how will he not, also with him, graciously give us all things?"

It's a rhetorical question—what Paul means is that God will most certainly give us all things for our good. Not only will he supply all our ultimate needs, but he will bring into our lives only the things that are for our good.

Do we believe that God gave his Son? Do we believe the gospel? Then we are free to believe -- really believe -- that God will work all things for our good.

That's the logic of Romans 8:32. That's Mount Everest. Giving his Son was the hard thing; making every painful trial in our lives work for our good is easy. May God give us the grace to trust him in our trials.

What better words of joy and comfort could we ask for?