Desires Drive Me!

December 23, 2025

Scripture

“Trust in the Lord and do good; live in the land and enjoy security.  Take delight in the Lord, and

he will give you the desires of your heart.”  Psalm 37:3-4

Desires Drive Me!

There are many things that can motivate me.  Some things motivate me because there are negative consequences if I do not follow through with a commitment.  Sometimes I am motivated because I am trying to avoid something or someone.  Most of the time, I am motivated by the avoidance of some kind of pain, inconvenience, or awkwardness.

There are other things that motivate me because there are positive consequences if I do follow through with a commitment.  I am motivated because I am trying to achieve something or trying to grow a relationship with someone.  I am often motivated when I am yearning for more love, more joy, or more peace although I can also be motivated when I am striving for affirmation, worth, or meaning.

Many of the things that motivate us are external; a promotion at work, a starting position on the team, or a date with the new guy.  However, some motivators go much deeper than the external rewards; they well up deep inside our heart and soul.  There are things like purpose or belonging or mission or calling that motivate us.

No matter how they motivate me or whether they are external or internal, the desires that lie deep in my heart either draw me forward to be the person I was created to be or they hold me back from becoming who the Lord God wants me to become.

The difference is the focus of our desires.  I can allow my desires to focus on what I want or I can choose to have my desires focus on the presence and power of the Lord God in my life.  Whether my desires are self-centered and self-serving or whether they are Christ-centered and God-honoring makes a big difference in the contentment I experience in life.

David understood how the desires of our heart can drive us.  In Psalm 37:4 David writes; “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”  David acknowledges we all have desires; healthy desires, selfish desires, holy desires, sinful desires, wholesome desires, vengeful desires, etc.

Our desires may be motivated by shame or lust or anger or loneliness or fear or grief or greed.  Our desires may be motivated by a need for affirmation or a need to belong or a need to win or a need to stop the pain or a need to discover my purpose. 

Or, desires may be motivated by a heart that wants to bring delight to the Lord God or a soul that wants to draw near to the Lord God or a mind that wants to choose the Lord God above all other things or a body that has been healed by the Lord God.  Our desires may be motivated by the assurance we are a child of God or the hope we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus or the confidence the Lord God will provide for our needs.    

David learned that when our heart and soul and mind are focused on bringing delight to the Lord God, our desires will align with what the Lord God wants most for us.  The result will be the fulfillment of the God-honoring desires in our heart and an overflow of joy and praise and delight in our life.

The desires which the Lord God will fulfill in me are the desires that honor and exalt and proclaim the Lord God as well as those that demonstrate my eagerness to trust and obey the Lord God while I serve other people in His name.

Determining whether or not I am taking delight in the Lord God is not very difficult.  I can examine my prayer life, my worship time, and my time in spiritual conversations with other people.  However, determining whether or not the desires of my heart are aligned with the dream and the calling and the direction the Lord God has for me life is much more difficult.

The more I am invested in a particular heart-desire, the less honest I will be with myself, with other people, and with Jesus as to whether it honors and exalts the Lord God.  Self-deception as well as a reluctance to hear the truth about a heart-desire that does not honor or exalt the Lord God will become significant barriers to a God-honoring life. 

Sometimes we will need the help of another Christ-follower.  Asking the other person to help you do an honest inventory of the desires of your heart will likely take some time and often the process will be uncomfortable.  But, the Holy Spirit can use that person to help you see more clearly whether the desires of your heart are honoring and exalting the Lord God.

The promise is that as we fill our days with more and more delight in the Lord God, our heart-desires will gradually shift towards honoring and exalting the Lord God with all of our heart, soul, and mind.

Reflect

The human heart tends to be selfish and self-centered.  The result is we often delight in the things of the world; i.e., the things the world says are most important.  Have you gradually put aside the deepest desire of your heart; i.e., to know you are loved by Jesus? 

Could Jesus say of you what He said in Revelation 2:4; “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had (for Jesus) at first.”?  What seems to be the deepest desire of your heart today?  In other words, what is really driving you right now? 

Pray

Lord God, fill my heart with a clear and deep desire to live my life aligned with Your purposes.  Give me eyes that can see the need for a change in the focus of my heart so I can shift my focus from me to You, Lord.  Give me an even deeper faith in you, Lord, so I may trust your presence, your provision, and your protection more than I am depending upon the things the world says are most important.  I pray in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

Act

Take a careful inventory of your heart this week.  Each day write down with different words what is motivating you most in this season of life.  Be honest.  Be specific.  Be humble.  At the end of seven days, take each of your descriptions and write a new inventory of your heart desires.  Then, take some time to pray.  Confess where your desires are not aligned with God’s will.  Confess where your desires are focused on you rather than on the fruit the Holy Spirit can produce in you.  Ask the Lord God to re-orient the desires of your heart so you can take delight in the Lord God each day.  Ask the Lord God to re-orient the desires of your heart so you can live more fully into God’s dream for you.