The Desires of the Heart: What’s Your ONE Thing?

Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself also in the Lord,and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” It’s a verse that some take to mean that if you are good and love God, He will give you what you want. I don’t see it that way, though. I think it means that if your delight – what you want – is the Lord, you will have Him. Last week’s blog was about distractions. This week is about focus. What is the one thing you want more than anything else?

Solomon Asked For Wisdom

In 1 Kings 3:9, Solomon got the chance to ask God for anything he wanted, and he chose wisdom. “Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?” He wanted to be able to judge God’s people fairly, but he didn’t feel like he was equipped to do it on his own. Here was a man who asked for a tool to do the job that God had called him to do. James 1:5 tells us that we can have the same thing if we will but ask. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

Agur Asked For Two Things

Proverbs 30 was written by a man known only as Agur, son of Jakeh. In Proverbs 30:7-8, he also makes a request of the Lord. He says, “Two things I request of You (Deprive me not before I die). Remove falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches—feed me with the food allotted to me.”

Here was another guy who asked God for something that would help him navigate our world. He wanted God to fix an apparent character flaw within himself. He also wanted God to give him just enough so that he wasn’t too rich so he became proud or too poor so he would have to steal and give God a bad name. I certainly can relate to both of these requests. Agur wanted to live a life that pleased God. That’s why he asked for the tools he felt he needed to achieve it.

But David Asked for God Himself

One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.

Psalm 27:4

Psalm 27 is one of my favorite chapters in the whole Bible. Written by King David, a man after God’s own heart, it’s full of a passionate faith. In it, he makes the declaration that he wants only ONE thing from God. (“One thing have I desired of the Lord.”) He will set his mind to getting it (that will I seek after). He wants to be part of God’s family forever. (
(“That I will dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.”) And, he wants to be close enough to God to know Him and someday be in His presence. (“To behold the beauty of the Lord.”) Finally, he wants to be able to have a relationship with Him, to be able to ask God questions and get answers. (“And to enquire in His temple.”)

David was a man of war. He had blood on his hands, not just from battles, but from his own sin as well. As a king, he lived a life of passion and power on the one hand but integrity and purpose on the other. Like all of us, he was human. But he was a human being who loved God with all of his heart. When he looked at his life and thought about what the most important thing was to him, the answer was clear. He wanted God above everything else.

What Do You Want?

Some people look at their lives and play the “if only” game. If only I had better health. If only I had a better job, a different spouse, more money, more time, etc. They have set up scenarios in their minds in which all of their problems could be solved if only this or that were different. But so many others have testified that even upon receiving that one thing they were asking for, there was still a hole, a void, a need for something more. If you aren’t careful, even when you get what you want, something else earthly will become your new “one thing,” and the cycle will begin again.

In these last days, I think it is important for each of us to examine our own hearts. What do we want more than anything else? The Bible tells us to pray unceasingly, and I don’t know about you, but I’m ALWAYS asking for something. I often ask for the tools to achieve the calling God has put on my life. I also ask for the strengthening of my character and the provision to give me the ability to live a life that pleases Him. But when I consider my heart’s greatest desire, like David, mine is the Lord. I think it HAS to be in order for us to get through the times of hardship that the watchmen have warned us will come in these last days.

Anchor in Jesus

Hebrews 6:19 says, “This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil.” In essence, the desires of our heart to be with God in spirit now and in person someday is what anchors us, grounds us, and keeps us. There is a chain that goes from us straight through the veil, the doorway between the physical and the spiritual realm, and attaches itself to the throne of God. In that way, we can’t be blown by winds of (false) doctrine or tossed in the tempest of the wicked. Instead, will be founded on the Rock of Christ Jesus.

Want to hear the hymn “I’ve Anchored in Jesus”? Listen to it on my No Longer Lukewarm YouTube channel. I read my blogs for those who like to listen while they are doing something else. I also have a playlist called Hymns With Hannah. Here I collect all the hymns and “specials” from our talented worship team. Subscribe for new music each week.

Enjoy timely articles? Try 4 Distractions For Christians We Must Beware from last week.  Or, try 4 Ways to Avoid Spiritual Deception. It is a testimony about a time when I was deceived and what God taught me through the experience. Or, check out Three Steps to Forgive From the Heart. In that one, we look at the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant and learn ways to truly forgive.