WHEN DREAMS GRAB HOLD OF YOUR HEART

“Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4

Today’s verse is one that my mom introduced to me back when I was a young lady on the edge of adulthood. It is still one of my favorite verses of Scripture because it invites me to listen to the desires of my heart. I think we all struggle at times to know whether listening to the desires of our hearts is a good thing or a bad thing. But I want to encourage you today to listen to those little nudges, sparks, and little desires that try to surface and that make your heart beat just a little bit faster….

This verse can give us the wrong idea about God, as if He is a genie in a bottle, available to grant our wishes. I believe He is the Wish-Granter, but there is a beautiful twist to this verse….. “Delight yourself in the Lord….” first. Dream chasing and wishing upon a star are beautiful, but God wants us to interlace those with a heart that takes delight in getting to know the Dream Giver. What I love about this verse is that it magnifies our relationship with Jesus and shows us that by pressing into Him, He will shape and mold our desires to want His plan and dreams for our lives. When our desires are in line with His plans and His will, of course He wants to give us the desires of our hearts…and He will.

Desires will ebb and flow through the seasons of life. We can put them all in God’s safe, able arms and He will guide us to living out the dreams He has preplanned for us. God is the Dream-Planter. He loves to plant little seeds of dreams in YOUR heart that He will use to lead you through life, give you great joy, guide you into living out the gifts He has put in you, and to make an impact in the world around you.

So take those desires, dreams, and ideas to God. Write them down in a journal and talk to God about them. As You delight in Him, get to know Him, and walk through life with Him, He will convince you that His plan for your life is far better than anything you can think, dream, or imagine. He is the Pursue-Er of your heart. He loves you that much. He is knocking on the door of your heart because He wants you to know today that His plan for your life is the best possible plan you could possibly imagine. The way to live out that plan is to delight in Him and get to know Him.

How do we delight in Him?

• Spend time reading the Bible – The Bible is His letter to you and He wants to talk to you through His Word.
• Talk to Him – Pray on a walk with Him, journal your prayers, talk to Him in the car (be careful driving!) or just sit quietly and talk to Him in your heart.
• Worship Him – Put on some praise music and sing to Him.
• Honor Him – Listen to those little ways that He is asking You to be obedient to Him.
• Thank Him – Thank Him for all of the gifts He has brought you.
• Choose Him – Choose time with Him, talking to Him, worshipping Him, honoring Him, thanking Him over other things that seem so urgent.
• Trust Him – Ask His Spirit to help you choose to trust Him instead of worrying.
• Enjoy Him – Take delight in the fact that He’s got you.

What are the desires of your heart? I know that feeling of wanting a dream to happen! Ahhh! It’s exciting! It’s overwhelming! It’s frustrating!

But the sweet thing is….is that the answer to following our dreams is taking delight in God. Then whether that dream comes true or whether another one surfaces….we can have peace that the Dream Giver is in control. We can rest, lean back, and surrender to His plan because as we have gotten to know Him, we have begun to believe that His way is best….and that’s all we want.

Prayer: “Amazing Lord, thank You for planting desires in my heart. May I bring each and everyone of them to You. Shape and mold my desires to be in line with Your best plan for my life. Help me want what You want for my life. Help me press into You, delight in You, and let You take the lead of my life and my dreams.”