Posted by Psalm 37:4-5
“Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.”
King David writes on a high note in this Psalm. In spite of the discouragement that can overcome us in times of testing and the many trials God’s people may face. Yet, there is a comfort that comes with the hope of certain deliverance. To delight yourself in the Lord, receiving the desires of your heart, take on new meaning in the light of trying circumstances. For many, facing difficulties, the desires of their heart never go beyond being delivered from their present circumstances. Delighting ourselves in the Lord, and receiving the desires of our heart is lifestyle, not confined to adverse circumstances only.
Life is a sacred trust
All life emanates from God, the only absolute, Sovereign self-sustaining one. Life is therefore, a sacred trust granted to us by God. There is an amazing degree of stability that comes to those who rest in His goodness thus experiencing His faithfulness; which is exactly what David is talking about here. The simple condition for this blessed experience is to delight ourselves in in the Lord as David said.
There are many who want God to grant them the desires of their heart, and yet delight so little in Him. In the context of this Psalm, the desires birth within us are from God and do not originate within ourselves. This might be unsettling to those who aren’t in the habit of placing God first in their lives. Those who have placed God first already know He is infinitely good to all who call on Him without ulterior motives. “The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.” (Psalm 145:18) The following statements allude to the fact that God places these good desires within us.
Commitment is the Price of Desires Granted
“Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him” is a statement of surrendering all to God. People, who find no delight in God as a way of life, will never commit their future plans hopes and dreams to Him. Remember, life is a sacred trust. All human beings are created in His image and likeness, and have been entrusted with God’s resources; the most precious of these being the gift of life itself. God created people to partner with Him in managing planet earth.
Genesis 1:26 says Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” The New Testament expands on this original intention in the Great Commission to the Church (see Matthew 28:16-20). God has never changed His mind about us partnering with Him in His global strategy of world redemption to heal and bless the nations.
You might be wondering “what does this have to do with receiving the desires of my heart? Everything! David longed for the glory and the Presence of God to be seen on the earth. He understood the big picture of God’s master plan in creation, and that His blessings are never given haphazardly, but for a purpose. This is precisely why we have been redeemed.
You were not born again by accident, you were chosen and invited into this new life of blessing in Christ. Jesus said as much to his disciples; “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you (purpose) that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you (blessing -the desires of your heart).” (John 15:16)
This is exactly what Jesus meant when he was teaching his disciples to pray; “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (purpose). (Matthew 6:10) Jesus was teaching complete surrender to God’s purpose on the earth as it was designed to be in heaven. You’ll note that this statement of surrender comes before the requests for provisions and protection (blessing -the desires of your heart) that follow in the Lord’s Prayer.
Later on, in Matthew 6:33 Jesus says; “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (purpose), and all these things shall be added to you” (blessing -the desires of your heart). Is not having all these things added to us the desires of our heart after all? Life is indeed a sacred trust, Both David in this Psalm and Jesus in his teaching on prayer are saying God can be trusted to come through for those who will commit their very lives into His hands, and follow Him. The idea behind committing our all to God is about partnering with Him in His work of redemption, and He supplies our every need in return (who doesn’t desire this!). Our Father in heaven knows how to take good care of His children (see Matthew 7:7-11).
Commitment Attracts God’s Blessings
In David’s Psalm, verse five “commit your way” literally means to “roll away.” We are to roll our cares upon the Lord, and not carry them ourselves! Peter encourages believers saying; “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:6-7) Again in Matthew 11:28 Jesus says; “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
Those who do not delight themselves in God, trusting Him enough to commit their way to Him, will not be able to rest in the Lord to any degree that will bring them peace of mind. David understood God’s purpose in blessing all who are committed to Him, he was so overwhelmed by the blessings of God he wrote; “Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits” (Psalm 103:2). Yes, we are redeemed to inherit a blessing (see 1 Peter 3:8-9).
Children are Naturally Committed to Their God Given Desires
We are designed to walk with God and live an amazingly useful productive and satisfying life. This life perfectly matches our God given gifts and talents. Many of us grow older with the thoughts of what might have been, had we followed our heart while growing up. Some may have been discouraged; others might have been talked into a career path that didn’t match their gifts or satisfy the desire of their heart.
God designed us to follow our heart and to think intelligently about the gifts and talents we’ve been given. Paul tells the Church at Ephesus “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10) Paul wasn’t talking about religion; he was talking about a career path we were designed for.
We are designed to enjoy what we do for a living. God is so good that He gave us gifts and talents to enjoy and to earn a living with! Imagine that, we were meant to go to work doing those things we’re most passionate about, and get paid doing it! Flowing in our gifts and talents gives us a career path that we are most passionate about because it’s flowing from the deepest desires of our heart! Yes, if you will delight yourself in the Lord, He WILL give you the desires of your heart.
It’s Never Too Late to Start
George Eliot said “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” That is true; Moses began the greatest adventure of his life at 80 years of age. Although some may start later in life, it helps to understand that our options will be limited compared to what they were when we were younger. That should not discourage us from pursuing our God given purpose. Whether we begin early or late isn’t the point. The point is living life the way we were created to live it, and looking back with a grateful heart knowing we were doing what we were designed for. Nothing compares with the satisfaction that comes from a life well lived, doing our part in God’s Kingdom business of world redemption for the blessing of the nations.
“Children simply enjoy the beautiful wonders of life & naturally begin flowing in their created purpose by just being themselves. The gifts and talents that came so naturally to us in our youth give us an indication of our God given purpose in life, we can learn something from our youth… We were created to be ourselves. Pursue God’s purpose for your life, delight yourself in the Lord, commit your way to Him and allow Him to reconnect you with the deepest desire of your heart. Rediscover those things you’ve always been most passionate about, place your trust in Him, and He will bring it to pass” –JSP