Bible League: Living His Word Take delight in the LORD,and he will give you your heart's desires There are times when Christians relate to God as if He were nothing more than a servant of their desires and wishes. God is God for them when He satisfies what they want and when they want it. They go about their lives doing whatever it is they feel like doing and they expect God to validate their decisions by blessing whatever it is they are trying to accomplish. It never occurs to them that God may have plans of His own. It never occurs to them that God may have plans for them. Such Christians, however, are immature in the faith. They still have it backwards. God is the Sovereign Lord and King of the universe. We are His servants and not the other way around. Our job is not to get God on board our projects, but to get on board His projects. Our job is to set aside the desires of our sinful nature and find out what He wants. We should be praying for the direction and leading of the Holy Spirit rather than praying for the Lord to bless the direction and leading we have already embarked upon. It is true, as says our verse for today, that God will give us our heart's desires. But there is one stipulation: we must take delight in the Lord. What does it mean to take delight in the Lord? It means that we love the Lord for who He is and for what He is all about. It means that we like the commands, plans, and purposes of God. It means that we are willing to exchange our own desires for the desires of the Lord. God is willing to give us the desires of our heart if those desires have been conformed to His plans and purposes for us. Today, before you go about your business, ask God to show you what He desires for the day. Matthew 6:33 tells us that we should seek first the Kingdom of God, not that we should seek first our own kingdom. God will give us our heart's desires when we have a heart for God. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingDeuteronomy 3, 4 Deuteronomy 3 -- Defeat and Division of Og; Moses Forbidden from Crossing the Jordan NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Deuteronomy 4 -- Israel Urged to Obey; Idolatry Forbidden NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading Mark 11:20-33 Mark 11 -- The Triumphal Entry; the Money Changers; the Withered Fig Tree; Jesus' Authority NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion Teach us to realize the brevity of life,so that we may grow in wisdom. Insight Realizing that life is short helps us use the little time we have more wisely and for eternal good. Challenge Take time to number your days by asking, “What do I want to see happen in my life before I die? What small step could I take toward that purpose today?” Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Psalm 118:8 It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in man.Doubtless the reader has been tried with the temptation to rely upon the things which are seen, instead of resting alone upon the invisible God. Christians often look to man for help and counsel, and mar the noble simplicity of their reliance upon their God. Does this evening's portion meet the eye of a child of God anxious about temporals, then would we reason with him awhile. You trust in Jesus, and only in Jesus, for your salvation, then why are you troubled? "Because of my great care." Is it not written, "Cast thy burden upon the Lord"? "Be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication make known your wants unto God." Cannot you trust God for temporals? "Ah! I wish I could." If you cannot trust God for temporals, how dare you trust him for spirituals? Can you trust him for your soul's redemption, and not rely upon him for a few lesser mercies? Is not God enough for thy need, or is his all-sufficiency too narrow for thy wants? Dost thou want another eye beside that of him who sees every secret thing? Is his heart faint? Is his arm weary? If so, seek another God; but if he be infinite, omnipotent, faithful, true, and all-wise, why gaddest thou abroad so much to seek another confidence? Why dost thou rake the earth to find another foundation, when this is strong enough to bear all the weight which thou canst ever build thereon? Christian, mix not only thy wine with water, do not alloy thy gold of faith with the dross of human confidence. Wait thou only upon God, and let thine expectation be from him. Covet not Jonah's gourd, but rest in Jonah's God. Let the sandy foundations of terrestrial trust be the choice of fools, but do thou, like one who foresees the storm, build for thyself an abiding place upon the Rock of Ages. Daily Light on the Daily Path Psalm 31:15 My times are in Your hand; Deliver me from the hand of my enemies and from those who persecute me.Deuteronomy 33:3 "Indeed, He loves the people; All Your holy ones are in Your hand, And they followed in Your steps; Everyone receives of Your words. 1 Kings 17:2-4,8,9 The word of the LORD came to him, saying, • "Go away from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. • "It shall be that you will drink of the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there." • Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, • "Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and stay there; behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you." Matthew 6:25,32 "For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? • "For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. Proverbs 3:5,6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. • In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight. 1 Peter 5:7 casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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