November 2000
Page 1 - If the Ship is Sinking... By Paul Anderson
Page 2 - Give Me the Desires of My Heart! By Mary Ann Herzan
- Page 3 - Restoring the True Stronghold - Is God Your Mighty Fortress?
By Dr. Joe JohnsonPage 4 - Association of Renewal Churches (ARC)
Page 5 - Director's Note
Give Me the Desires of My Heart!
By Mary Ann HerzanIn the movie, Life Is Beautiful, a wise and gentle Jewish uncle is teaching his nephew the art of serving with dignity and tells him by way of example, "God serves man, but God is not man's servant." When David tells us in Psalm 37, "Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart" (v. 4), it may be easy to mistake God's act of serving us for Him being "our servant." Many have done so. Some will say that if our ways please the Lord, it is "safe" for Him to give us the desires of our heart for then we will not grasp them or make idols of them. Recently, in my quiet times of morning prayer, I have felt the Lord showing me a deeper meaning of David's words.
You and I were created in the image of God and whether we realize it or not, our deepest desire is for Him. When Adam first saw Eve he cried out, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh…." Many Biblical scholars have interpreted this as, "Wow!" Adam grasped immediately that here was someone he could relate to, fellowship with, and be known by. Deep within our hearts is a "Wow!" waiting to come out when we recognize that the One for whom we were created is the One who fulfills all our yearnings-not by what He does, but He Himself. For we have been made of the "same stuff" as He.
In my prayer times I began to sense that the Lord was "unwrapping" desires of my heart that had been there all along, but were unaware to me. Many years ago I remember crying out, "Lord, I didn't know You were the One my heart wanted to love." Just so, I am finding that my heart wants holiness; my heart wants Him to be glorified; my heart wants the narrow way that leads to life. As the Lord peels away the wrapping of desires I think I want, I see there is something else that has been there all along.
When I checked out Strong's Concordance I found that the Hebrew word for "give" in this psalm is used with great latitude. Some of the meanings are to "bring forth," "restore," and cause to "shoot forth (up)." In Psalm 73, Asaph may have thought the desires of his heart were for the things he envied in "the wicked," but time in the sanctuary allowed the true desire of his heart to "come forth"-to "shoot up." He then says in verse 25, "and there is nothing upon earth that I desire besides Thee." In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul tells us of his desire to have the "thorn in his side" removed, but he, too, discovers something deeper as he goes before the Lord and then is able to say, "I am content with weaknesses."
I have observed, both in myself and others, two ways that we allow the Lord to "unwrap" the deeper desires of our hearts. In one we struggle with the sense that we must put our own desires on the altar and die to self. It is usually a time of wrestling. In the other we "see the King in His beauty" and recognize without a fight that He is what we want. The less valuable item loses its draw when something far more valuable is found (Matthew 13:44).
This is why our times of quiet prayer are so priceless-and powerful. They make the difference between wrestling our way along with the Lord or walking with noble contentment and grace. One way tells the world that the Christian is always having to "give up" something. The other tells the world that we have Him who is "more precious than silver, more costly than gold, and more beautiful than diamonds." Surely we know which of these honors and glorifies Him as He deserves.
How many times have you looked back on your life and been grateful that you did not receive what you thought you wanted? So, beloved of the Lord, let us come to our quiet meeting place with the Lord asking Him to "unwrap" the desires of our heart and give us what we didn't even realize we wanted. I promise you that, like Asaph, you will say there is nothing else that you want (Psalm 73). Like David, you will say there is only one thing you desire (Psalm 27). Like Paul, you will count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus your Lord (Philippians 3:8).
Yes, Lord, give us the desire of our hearts! Give us Yourself!
Mary Ann Herzan has ministered at retreats, conferences, and Bible Studies for over 20 years. She currently serves in David's Heart, a self-supporting ministry of East Immanuel Lutheran Church, St. Paul, MN, which has been established to encourage the Body of Christ in wholehearted devotion to the Lord. You may contact her by phone at 651.429.6254 or by e-mail at Davids_Heart@juno.com for further information.
