May he give you the desire of your heart and make your plans succeed. (Psalm 20:4, NIV)
Recently I played in a golf outing where a round washer-shaped ball mark, like a flat O, was given as a tee prize. Inscribed were the words, “What is at the center of your life?”
That morning, before the event, I had read the words written by David in Psalm 20, “May he give you the desire of your heart and make your plans succeed.” Naturally, as I looked at the washer and contemplated Psalm 20:4, I asked myself not only what was at the center of my life but also, What is the desire of my heart?
Various thoughts came to mind—things like golf success, financial security, family and popularity. But the fleeting nature of these items seemed much too frivolous for them to qualify as the legitimate “desire of my heart.”
After thinking it through, I concluded that Jesus is the only worthy desire of our hearts. My wife’s father recently passed away and went to be with the Lord. Any earthly desire that he held dear during his lifetime ended up like castles in the sand. His death reminded me that life is short and eternity is long, so I need to invest my time wisely.
Acts 13:36 describes a life well-lived with the words, “For when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep.” King David did not live a perfect life, yet he was called a man after God’s own heart. David served God’s purpose with his life. Any deep affection short of a God-sized desire wanes in comparison to what our true purpose in life should be.
Truth be told, if God gave me all the various desires of my life through the years, I would probably be an extremely cocky, arrogant person. I would have a lot of cool but worthless stuff. My heart—cleansed by the blood of Christ, yet still influenced by my sinful nature—often desires selfish gain.
On a good day though, my heart desires Jesus. The desire of my heart is to know Jesus and to make him known. Hopefully, the combination of desiring God first and serving his purpose in our generation will keep us from wasting our life on selfish gain.
Today, then, contemplate this question: If God gave you the desire of your heart, what would that look like?
—
Korky Kemp
August 28, 2012
Copyright 2012 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.