There are a lot of things I want in this world. I want to have a new house. I want a new career. I want to be thin. I have pursued achieving these desires. I’ve saved. I’ve researched and planned. I’ve dieted till I’m so sick of salad I could die. These goals have been just out of my reach. I’ve been wondering how come the more I focus on these goals the farther I get from achieving them? Lately, I’ve had some other wants. I want to be healthy and to feel well. I don’t want to have a permanent disability. I want to walk straight and run freely.

I’m a believer. I know my God is all-powerful.  Couldn’t He just let me win the lottery or something?  I could buy a house with the winnings. Couldn’t He miraculously give me a dream job as a movie critic? After all, I do love popcorn.  Couldn’t I wake up one morning looking slim and trim.   Wake up without pain and my heart in perfect health. None of this is out of His realm of capability. There is not one thing I could desire that our Father God could not do or give me. Matthew 19:26 says Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Is my focus all wrong? Am I focused on the now rather than the eternal? I keep praying for these wants to happen but sometimes God makes me wait or maybe it will never happen. What should my desire be?

Natalie Grant has a new song called More Than Anything. It says:  “I know if you wanted to you could wave your hand and spare me from this heartache and change your plan. But even if you don’t I pray… Help me want the Healer more than the healing. Help me want the Savior more than the saving. Help me want the Giver more than the giving. Help me want Jesus more than anything.” 

It has struck me how this should be my prayer. I get so focused on what I want and desire I treat Jesus like He is the owner of a huge shopping mart.  I put in my order and expect Him to deliver. Jesus is not Amazon!  There is no 2 day shipping. My prayers have become order forms rather than a conversation with the Lover of my soul. Imagine if Amazon had the wisdom of God. Could they see all the consequences of the orders we Christians place. They won’t know someone is diabetic. They won’t know that if someone orders candy that it is going to put them into a diabetic coma. They can’t tell if a customer purchases a treadmill that they will fall off of it and break a leg. Jesus knows all things. He has wisdom in his blessings and in his closing of doors. We fight against Him when the wants don’t happen in our time. I have become a firm believer in being thankful when what we want doesn’t happen. I know for some reason the Lord blocked that from happening. He sees the whole picture.

If we seek after the wrong things we may miss out on amazing blessings. There are also protections the Lord has put up blocking our human desires. It can get very frustrating when we focus on the fleshly desire rather than on what God’s perfect plan is for us . I have to trust that Jesus is for me. He is not against me and wants me to have good things. He is our Good Shepherd after all. (John 10:11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.)  He knows where the wolves lie in wait to devour us. He knows the rocks on the cliff are loose and we could fall to our death if He allows us to wonder there.

If we stay focused on the Healer rather than on just the healing we will truly know healing in the end. If we focus on our Savior rather than the saving we will know perfect confidence in His power to save us. If we focus on the Giver of all good things we will focus on His ability to give us what we need when we need it. Trusting in His goodness and His love is the key to living a fruitful Christian life. He loves us. He  knows what will bring out blessings to us. Even the painful things can be disguised blessings. The relationships lost, jobs lost, times in spiritual deserts can bring about something else that will bless us more. We must trust His wisdom over our own. Maybe that time of illness. Your long recovery gives you the opportunity to study the Word. It may grow something that never would have had the time to grow if you were able to work full-time. Maybe the nights of insomnia gave you time to pray when you normally had no time to do so. Maybe a lost love will make room for your true love.

Knowing Jesus is the key to it all. If we want a relationship with Jesus then He will be there. He will add in all the rest. (Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.) He loves us. We need to confidently walk in that knowledge. We need to stay focused on wanting Jesus rather than what he can give us. We need to stop shopping in our prayers.

Should we not ask God for things we desire? Of course not, but our focus needs to be on Jesus not on what we desire. James 4:2 says we don’t have because we don’t ask God for it. We are to petition the Lord but we also need to accept it when He closes the door on it.