I wonder why we put our walk with Christ into certain disciplined and unhappy boxes. Why do we think it is more noble to be a martyr than to live fully and joyfully? We read a story about a man who wanted to be so separate from the filth of the world that he built himself a pole and perched upon it until his death. People came from miles to stare at the disgusting, flesh-rotting, sun-crusty old saint. What glory did God receive from this sacrificial life? My children were stunned when we finished his story. We all wondered if we were supposed to be impressed or sad.
Recently, our pastor taught a sermon about "Disciplined Desire". In short, God wants us to walk in His will and we discover His will by seeking Him in prayer and then walking in His answers/ways.
In the Garden, He gave them a "tree to be desired" and told them not to touch it (Gen 3:6). He knew it was desirable and made them to desire it. The Fall was never about desire, but rather about discontentment, lack of gratitude.
In Psalm 37, He reminds us not to fret, three times, while He says to commit our ways to Him and He will give us our desires. Desires are passion and enthusiasm directed. God wants us to be passionate and enthusiastic. God hates that which is lukewarm. Directed drive is useful. Satan wants our desires to be misdirected. God wants our desires (those that align with His will) to be fulfilled. Isn't Hell a place of eternally unquenched desire? The rich man in Hell was thirsty and begging for just a drop of water in Luke 16:19-24. In Psalm 81:8-12 and Romans 1:20,24 God gave the wicked over to their own lusts/desires. It destroyed them.
God wants to grant our requests: Psalm 20:4,5 and I John 5:15. Even the Hebrew root of the word "desire" is to ask. God directs our desires as we invite Him to do so. The wise understand God's will, pray for God's will, and walk in God's will. In doing this, we have our desires fulfilled.
We went on vacation last week. That is an amazing statement. As husband and wife we have not been on vacation for fifteen years. And before that, not since our first child was born. I'd had not desired to leave our children and between nursing, pregnancy, childcare and finances it had not been a reality. We haven't missed it. But, we are in a new season and therefore, we took a three day vacation to a Florida beach on the Gulf.
We flew down early one morning, rented a car, drove to our oceanfront hotel and two days later we did it all in reverse. Two days of warm, sunny beaches, palm trees, delicious food and touring the bay and Gulf was plenty. Every desire we had was filled!
We had previewed a large speedboat tour online and were excited to go on it. It boasted dophin jumping in its wake. The tour was one hour long, and after we'd been out for an hour and no dophin had been spotted, we were beginning to feel disappoinment. When I consulted with Bob about it, he had been thinking the same as me: if we wanted to see the dolphin we should pray for them. We both had already started praying but agreeing to pray together and saying it outloud just gave more opportunity for God to show off. And He did...so beautifully that I could barely endure the excitement. The three dophin that showed up (within minutes) performed at the rear of our boat as if they were trained at SeaWorld. There was no bait or any reward for them whatsoever. They just enjoyed playing in the boat's wake at this particular speed of which the captain was fully aware. At the end of the ride, when we asked the First Mate how our dolphin show rated among the others (the boat goest out three times a day) he said that ours had been a nine out of ten!
There were many more answers to prayers on our vacation. They all confirmed that God does care about our desires. He extends His love to us through the relationship-building practice of our asking and His answering. It is not religious. It is faith-building.
There was a mama, baby and a medium-sized dolphin (daddy?) Below is the baby.
The First Mate thought we were honeymooners! We jumped at the chance to tell him we've been married for over 2 decades and have nine children and that we were truly enjoying our vacation!
Recently, our pastor taught a sermon about "Disciplined Desire". In short, God wants us to walk in His will and we discover His will by seeking Him in prayer and then walking in His answers/ways.
In the Garden, He gave them a "tree to be desired" and told them not to touch it (Gen 3:6). He knew it was desirable and made them to desire it. The Fall was never about desire, but rather about discontentment, lack of gratitude.
In Psalm 37, He reminds us not to fret, three times, while He says to commit our ways to Him and He will give us our desires. Desires are passion and enthusiasm directed. God wants us to be passionate and enthusiastic. God hates that which is lukewarm. Directed drive is useful. Satan wants our desires to be misdirected. God wants our desires (those that align with His will) to be fulfilled. Isn't Hell a place of eternally unquenched desire? The rich man in Hell was thirsty and begging for just a drop of water in Luke 16:19-24. In Psalm 81:8-12 and Romans 1:20,24 God gave the wicked over to their own lusts/desires. It destroyed them.
God wants to grant our requests: Psalm 20:4,5 and I John 5:15. Even the Hebrew root of the word "desire" is to ask. God directs our desires as we invite Him to do so. The wise understand God's will, pray for God's will, and walk in God's will. In doing this, we have our desires fulfilled.
We went on vacation last week. That is an amazing statement. As husband and wife we have not been on vacation for fifteen years. And before that, not since our first child was born. I'd had not desired to leave our children and between nursing, pregnancy, childcare and finances it had not been a reality. We haven't missed it. But, we are in a new season and therefore, we took a three day vacation to a Florida beach on the Gulf.
We flew down early one morning, rented a car, drove to our oceanfront hotel and two days later we did it all in reverse. Two days of warm, sunny beaches, palm trees, delicious food and touring the bay and Gulf was plenty. Every desire we had was filled!
We had previewed a large speedboat tour online and were excited to go on it. It boasted dophin jumping in its wake. The tour was one hour long, and after we'd been out for an hour and no dophin had been spotted, we were beginning to feel disappoinment. When I consulted with Bob about it, he had been thinking the same as me: if we wanted to see the dolphin we should pray for them. We both had already started praying but agreeing to pray together and saying it outloud just gave more opportunity for God to show off. And He did...so beautifully that I could barely endure the excitement. The three dophin that showed up (within minutes) performed at the rear of our boat as if they were trained at SeaWorld. There was no bait or any reward for them whatsoever. They just enjoyed playing in the boat's wake at this particular speed of which the captain was fully aware. At the end of the ride, when we asked the First Mate how our dolphin show rated among the others (the boat goest out three times a day) he said that ours had been a nine out of ten!
There were many more answers to prayers on our vacation. They all confirmed that God does care about our desires. He extends His love to us through the relationship-building practice of our asking and His answering. It is not religious. It is faith-building.
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