Psalm 37:4-5 “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.”

When I read this passage it is so tempting to stop at verse four and not continue on.  It is so nice to picture God giving the desires of our hearts to us.  Would he grant anything we wish, like a genie in a bottle?  I even like to skip over the little words – take delight in the Lord, because it changes things.  The truth is when we delight in the Lord our desires change.  Our focus becomes clear and we are looking to the Lord of the Universe rather than at our small little world.  The desires change from what we think we need to what the Lord would give to us.  When we commit our way to the Lord we release control from our grasp and hand it over to the Almighty.  The words in the verses seem so easy.  Give it all to God; praise and delight in Him.  Let Him lead you trusting that your Creator will keep you right.  How hard can that be?  I, for one, find this a challenge.  I turn control over and then my wish for something to happen in my time and my way drives me to take control back.  I delight in the Lord and then I watch the news and it distracts me and weakens my trust.  People get in the way of God all the time yet He promises us His sovereign plan will unfold despite that.  Delight, commit and trust; the God of the Universe is at work and He knows what He is doing.  Praise God!

Lord,

Forgive my arrogance when I try to take over for you.  I release my pretend control back to you knowing you are always in control.  Turn my heart to seek your desires always, for it is there I will find delight.  Help me grow in trusting you, you will act.  Amen.