Written By: Alora Yee
There’s no doubt each of us has a deep desire in our hearts. Maybe even many desires. The desire itself isn’t sinful but to have desires contrary to the will of the Lord is. 2020 has ended, and a new year has begun. This is a time when much reflection happens on our desires, dreams, vision, goals, and plans for the new year. Let us be mindful to keep the Lord in mind in all that we pray, plan, and hope for.
“Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)
I believe God will never keep any part of Himself from us when we ask more of Him- to know Him more, be in His presence more, and have a mind and heart more like His. For the Word tells us, “you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13)
When it comes to our purpose and His plans for our life, we can often confuse those things with what we envision ourselves having from the Lord.
To proclaim the goodness of the Lord is different from “receiving statements” made that please our flesh and the desires of our heart. I’m sure we’ve all heard of the phrase “I receive that!” Are we receiving God’s truths? Or the truths we hope for, for ourselves? In the former, God is glorified. In the latter, we are glorified.
The same can be said of expectations we have when planning the year ahead. Are we self-examining our mission statements, our firm foundation in Christ, and the legacy we are passing on to the next generation? Or are we conceiving and impregnating ourselves with images from our own will?
“The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit. Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” (Proverbs 16:1-3)
There are two kinds of plans or vision for your life: those that are constant and those that are temporary. Plans that are of God to glorify God are constant (eternal). Those that are of ourselves to glorify ourselves are temporary (fleeting). The Lord will weigh the spirit, and we will see, in time, good or bad fruit (results).
“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:31-34)
Why does the Lord tell us not to worry? All those worries are temporary- our homes, careers, and even our marriages are temporary as we cease to be married in heaven. “The marriage between the church and the Lamb will exist forever,” as Jackie Hill Perry put it so beautifully in her interview about the idolatry of marriage. Idolatry is simply what we prioritize, our source of comfort and refuge in place of God. Let our comfort and refuge be in Christ alone, the cornerstone.
Let our desires, dreams, visions, goals, and plans be of constant, immovable principles and truths in Christ! Let us have a vision that is set in stone! Set in our cornerstone, Jesus!
Jesus’ sermon on the mount, Matthew 5-7, is all about the heart condition of the believer. He explains and gives examples of how exactly to stand on this firm foundation. We must stand with Him, in His ways, in His truths, and in His power if we are ever to be the light and salt of this earth from generation to generation.
Written by Alora Yee
