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Wednesday, March 23, 2011

God or Desire

Each person reading this blog has unmet desires within their heart.  Many of these are godly desires and we are waiting for God to bring them to fruition.  In the waiting God teaches us many things, like dependence upon Him, patience, and trust. 

The desire I remember the most over the years have been in regard to relationships.  Again these are godly desires, desiring children, desiring healing for my son, desiring godly friends to challenge and encourage me, a godly husband, and so forth.  God has honored me with these desires.  It did not happen over night and I had to learn several things before He honored me with them.

One of the things that needed to be learned is that a desire can become an idol.  The desire can consume your thought life.  The desire exalts itself over God in your life. 

For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 2 Corinthians 10:4-5

Those who regard worthless idols Forsake their own Mercy. But I will sacrifice to You With the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD.” Jonah 2:8-9

God had to teach me to bring every thought captive to Him. The desire started as innocent and good. As I got impatience in waiting, doubting began and the desire become all consuming.  I realized I wanted the  specific desire more than I wanted God.  An idol is anything that exalts itself over God.  So check your thought life...When your thoughts are free where do they roam?

Today if I find my mind being consumed with a desire, I question if this is an idol.  Not necessary the person or relationship becoming an idol but the desire of the relationship becoming the idol.  I pray and ask God to remove this relationship from me if it is ungodly in any way. The peace floods me! I have found He does not remove it, He honors me and strengthens the relationship!  But in my earlier walk of faith, I would have asked God to remove the relationship but my heart did not mean it.  So I had to back up and allow God to change my heart.  Here are some verses I prayed and begged God to work into my heart and life.  Oh God is faithful to work His truth into our lives.
Psalm 62:5-7
Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
   my hope comes from him.
6 Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
   he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
7 My salvation and my honor depend on God
   he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Psalm 84:11
 For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
   the LORD bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
   from those whose walk is blameless.
Proverbs 18:12
 Before a downfall the heart is haughty,
   but humility comes before honor
Luke 14:7-11
 So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them: 8 “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; 9 and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. 10 But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. 11 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them: 8 “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; 9 and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. 10 But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. 11 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

What I learned was it is NOT  people who honor me.  It is God who honors me.  He does honor those who walk blameless before Him.  God changed my heart, for He is my desire.  When this idol raises it ugly head and it does often, my heart can honestly say...God You are my desire.  Remove this want from me or honor me with it.  God if this desire will become an idol for me..REMOVE it.  Don't let the relationship happen.  He is so much more satisfying than people!!  Taste and see that He is good.

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