What Does God Want?
When many of us pray, we bring to the Lord a list of requests. And He loves to answer our needs and even give us the desires of our hearts.
But did you know that God also has a list of wants?
It’s true. We read about it in Jeremiah 32:38-41 (God speaking):
“They will be My people, and I will be their God. I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear Me and that all will go well for them and for their children after them.
I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear Me, so that they will never turn away from Me. I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all My heart and soul.”
First of all, wow. What a stunning statement from our Abba Father.
Let’s look at 3 things from this rich passage that God wants:
1. God wants to give us singleness of heart and action.
Is there division in your heart? Do you feel like you are constantly wrestling against yourself to please God and do the right thing? I suppose David, that prolific lyricist in the Old Testament, knew well the struggle, as he voiced in Psalm 86:11, “Teach me Your way, Lord, that I may rely on Your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear Your Name” (emphasis mine). Oh, it would seem that David knew the secret… We cannot conjure this up or will ourselves into being sold out for Christ. This is a gift that God gives!
Allow God to give you the present He deeply wants to give you, this special singleness of mind, a totally devoted heart. And how do we allow God to give us this treasured gift? Have a receptive posture. If you want to receive something, your hand must be open, no? Simply decide in your mind that you will let God have what He wants — and receive this sold-out passion and earnest desire for God that He will give you!
2. God wants to never stop doing good to us.
God Almighty Himself has pledged an eternal covenant that won’t ever, ever be broken: that He will never stop doing good to us. Maybe some of you reading this right now are rolling your eyes. “Sure, sure,” you facetiously agree. And to that, I would say enough with the cynicism. It’s high time we take God at His word. It’s now that we lift our eyes above our situation, above our past, above our sins, and intentionally look at Jesus, our Author and Perfecter.
God is good, and He does good.
God is good, and He does good.
God is good, and He does good.
That sentence is always true, no matter where you place the emphasis! And look at the Jeremiah passage — God actually rejoices in doing good for us. It brings Him deep and complete pleasure to bless us. Let me also point out that because God’s nature never changes, we can be assured that God is always in a good mood!
Even in my heart as I write this, I am just so inclined to pause and receive this liberating truth… God adores me as His beloved son. Knowing this restructures my thought life and motivates me to please Him.
3. God wants to establish us in the land.
We are God’s ambassadors, and each of us has been commissioned to particular spheres of influence. Where do you presently live? You are an ambassador there. God has ordained you to influence your town or city. And His Spirit as a deposit in us guarantees that the ones who humbly submit to Him and boldly obey Him will make a difference in their land. After all, our magnificent Jesus did say, “A town built on a hill cannot be hidden” (Matthew 5:14, emphasis mine).
I see a not-far-away time when the Church will not only be relevant for people’s lives, but extremely important. I see a not-far-away time when ministry leaders will be invited to participate around influential tables because of the wisdom and vision they possess. I see a not-far-away time when God’s blessing on His people spills over onto their community’s economy, government officials, lawmakers, and more. You simply can’t separate Church and State because you can’t separate God from His relentless love for people.
It is God’s will to see whole nations repent, seek His face, and receive His blessing. And this happens as He establishes vibrant, influential, Spirit-empowered believers in the land who are passionate about revival and bold enough to speak up for Truth and Love.
Hallelujah!
Today, let God gift you with singleness of heart. Relish in the fact that He is good and loves to bless you. And own the community where you are established — God has situated you there for a reason: to generously love, humbly serve, and boldly proclaim the Gospel.
Live on purpose today, my friends..
Josh