"Fulfilling My Desires"

Written by Robert E. Bailes

What Do You Ask For?

Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him.
Psalm 37:4,5,7.

My daughter had a fundraiser this year and she was selling magazine subscriptions to get the money needed for bleachers, which we really needed at our new location.

There was one magazine that I really liked and it was reasonably priced. I thought I had done my part when I told her that I wanted this magazine the first night she came home with the catalog. I was satisfied, my daughter was happy because she had gotten her first three orders and all was good!

She received a reward for selling three before a certain date and I thought the selling was over for us. About two weeks later, to my surprise, she began to ask me to get another subscription because she needed three more sales to get another reward and she didn't want to be one of the few in her class that didn't get it.

She was going to get a fun day at school where she would be able to get out of some classes and watch a movie and play some. I knew it would be great but I really had no interest in buying more magazines. Every day when I was worn out and it was getting late, she would once again ask me to reconsider my decision. Each night I assured her that I wasn't planning on buying any more right now. What she didn't know was that each day I came a little closer to giving in and helping her, but I would always ask her if she was still checking with everyone she had on her list. She always emphatically said, "Yes"! She really was quite convincing and I trusted her to tell me the truth so I believed she was doing her best.

My hope was that she could find the right people and they would help her fill those last three orders. This went on for over a week and eventually the pleas came with moaning and begging as she expected me to pull her out of this fix she was in and give her what she wanted. Finally the last night had come and she still needed three sales to get the reward. I have to tell you that I have never heard a child in so much misery as this child was that night. I was aware of her need and I was fully aware that she was not going to let up until I helped her with it. She believed that I had the resources to some how make this happen for her and she was persistent in her pleading. Guess what, she was able to convince me of the importance her desire to the point that I stopped everything and helped her fill those orders, which even meant my own commitment to another purchase. See, she got what she wanted, but did she really need it that bad? Probably not, if you look at it from the viewpoint of an adult. But she is living and thinking from the level of a twelve year old and I can't expect her to understand my view. She got her wish and that's all that mattered!

Isn't this how we are sometimes with our Lord in prayer? Don't we moan and groan over something we want so we can enjoy the reward that we think will bring us true happiness? Then the day after we move on to the next thing that brings us fulfillment. I'm sure it is annoying to God sometimes when we beg Him for the things of this world that have so little value in His eyes!

My daughters reward for her sales wasn't of much value in my eyes but her happiness certainly meant the world to me!

Many times the things that we beg and plea for hold little value in the eyes of our Lord and He waits patiently to see if we are going to let it go, but eventually He let's us have it knowing how temporary the fulfillment will be and hoping that we will desire something that holds more everlasting value next time. There is a story told by Jesus that illustrates this in the beginning of chapter eighteen of Luke. Most of the time we just hear the first verse when people are teaching about prayer.

Luke 18:1 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

The story that follows talks about a widow who kept asking the judge to make justice of her adversary. She asked so many times that the judge, who didn't even fear God or care about her, finally gave in and did what she asked so that she would stop bothering him.

The judge didn't really have interest in doing what she wanted but went along with her wishes to be relieved of the nagging and pleading by the widow. I believe that Jesus chose to use a widow for this part for a specific reason. I believe that she represents the people in the world who once had a relationship by believing in Christ, represented as His bride, but later chose to chase after the pleasures and desires of this world rather than building a relationship with their Lord.

The church is referred to as the bride in the scriptures. The judge, who really doesn't care about her desire to be avenged, represents the people we look to in the world for our wants and desires. We may even pray for these things to happen, but actually we are expecting someone else to help make our desires become a physical reality. Yes, it is true that dependence on people to fulfill our wishes will alienate us from our Lord and that is exactly what satan wishes to do and actually is doing right now in the lives of most people you are in contact with each day. Satan causes us to desire the things that bring temporary fulfillment and pleasure.

Why do you think people are riding down the road in their brand new cars with frowns on their faces? Why do people have money to go on vacations, yet they seldom laugh or sing? What causes people to be so sad when they have all of their desires and more to come? What do you really think causes people to feel this way? Why do even children loose their excitement the day after Christmas when we have lavished them with gifts that we could only dream of having as a child?

Jesus was making a very important point here in this simple, yet profound story about the widow and the judge.

I want to learn and remember four things through the reading of this story.

First I want to remember to seek wisdom and discernment from God when I find myself wishing for something.

Secondly, I need to be sure that the desires of my heart are in check with God's will for my life and not something satan has sold me on, to boost my ego or create a higher image of myself.

The third thing to learn is when I find myself relying on someone else to fulfill all of my desires, whether material, physical or emotionally, I will find myself living as the widow searching for people to help me fulfill my wishes rather than God. This may lead me to my desires but I most certainly will join the many who appear to be blessed but find in their hearts emptiness and desire for something they do not have!

Our emptiness and desires can only be filled and satisfied by the eternal blessings that Jesus spoke of throughout the scriptures. That is the Living water that brings us a NEW Life in Christ!

The fourth thing I need to learn from this is that I am to maintain the attitude of a servant in Christ and then the desires of my heart will not become a struggle to fulfill each day. A servant gives and I cannot want more when I am busy giving! It is God who gives to us and I ought to be busy doing the same thing in this world. There are so many who need! Yes, they need the joy that comes with knowing Christ in a real relationship that fulfills every desire that the heart of man could ever want! That is the desire for true joy and peace within!

To finish, I wanted to ponder on these words written in the book of James and let us ask ourselves these questions today,

James 4:1-8 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? (without discernment from God)
2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
3 Ye ask, and receive not (not in God's will) , because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses (people who long for the desires of the world), know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwells in us lusted to envy?
6 But he gives more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resists the proud, but gives grace unto the humble. (those who serve and give of themselves for the Lord on earth)
7 Submit yourselves (become servants) therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.