“Delight yourself also in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)

Transformed desires

The above promise is well quoted. Even so, it’s very much misunderstood by many who believe it is a way to get anything they desire from God. First of all, the human heart is desperately wicked and often desires things God condemns (Jer. 17:9). For instance, God won’t give you someone else’s spouse or give you a truckload of gold bars. He only gives things that are in line with His Word—what's best for you or what’s needed to enable you to perform the assignment He’s created you for. So, what actually happens when you delight yourself in the Lord? He transforms your desires into what they should be! Then, with new desires, you receive the corrected but perfect desires of your heart! It’s a wonderful thing to finally desire the right things in line with God’s very best!

Therefore

The next verse, right after the one at the top, tells you what to do. Not only must you make God your delight, but you must also commit to and trust Him. Then God will act! Wow, and watch what He will do in your life!

“Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.” (Psalm 3:5)

“I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:28-30)

Trying to stay young is futile.

Have you noticed how movie stars age? They start off in their early film rolls as young, healthy, beautiful or handsome, and vibrant. Then, as the years roll by, you notice them aging. Then, you can tell that they’re having some “work” done. Not too bad at first, but some continue to do things to the point that they begin to look bizarre. It’s sad to watch! The truth is you cannot stop the aging process. You will continue to age until you reach the final stage, which is death. Its true for everybody. No matter how famous or rich you are, you cannot escape it. No one lives forever here on earth. The Bible puts it this way: “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” (Heb. 9:27) That’s a sobering thought!

There is a way to live forever!

Jesus said you can that live forever in the passage at the top: “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.” Even though there is nothing humanly possible we can do, God has made it possible through a very wonderful gift! He’s done everything possible to pay for your forever life in heaven; you just need to receive it in the right way, which is through repentance, which means turning from sin (Acts 3:19) and receiving it by faith (Eph. 2:8). That’s it! Many try to complicate it by adding a lot of religious steps and rules (works), but you can only be saved through complete trust in Jesus, believing in Him by faith!  

“that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;” (Rom. 10:9)

“And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.” (1 John 5:11)

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom. 6:23)

“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” (John 17:3)

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

Therefore

“Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” (John 1:12)

“For those who find me find life and receive favor from the Lord.” (Prov. 8:35)

“And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” (Matt. 19:29)

Compromise!

A compromise is defined as a concession to the other side in some manner rather than standing resolute. Although this may be a good business tactic in swinging deals or perhaps acceptable in resolving conflicts between family or friends, it’s never good regarding obeying God’s commands as laid out in His Word.

Choices will come!

The Ten Commandments, for instance, are not the ten suggestions! No wiggle room is allowed. This behavior rule will usually cause conflicts if you’re sincerely trying to live for God. Choices will continually appear, and you then must decide what to do. For instance, if you are watching a movie or program and they use the Lord’s Name in vain, violating the third commandment, do you keep watching? If your boss tells you to do something you know the Bible condemns, do you do it to keep your job? If you are obeying God, you will not compromise, period. But you rarely hear about anyone taking a stand like this in the modern world. This is especially true in politics; compromise on bills allows terrible things to come into law. Compromise usually begins small but doesn’t stay that way long; it progressively grows worse.

When confronted with a hard choice

The above passage is about people who do not compromise, no matter what. Jesus said, “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake...” This verse implies that they were confronted with a choice and did not compromise, no matter what!

The reward for non compromise

Even though it's extremely difficult to live without compromising God's commands, the second part of the passage makes a wonderful promise! They “will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.”

Therefore

“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” (Heb. 10:23)

“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (1 Cor. 15:58)

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Cor. 5:17 ESV)

New!

New is defined in the dictionary as having recently come into existence. It’s being fresh, brand-new, mint, virgin, new-fashioned, and unspoiled.

This is what happens to your inner spirit when you become born again (John 3:1–21). Even though your body and mind are the same after you receive Christ, your spirit becomes totally transformed which affects the rest of you: the way you take care of your body, now a temple for the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19–20), and the way you work daily to bring your mind (your thinking) into line with God’s Word (Rom. 12–2).

Therefore

“He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5)

“And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—“ (Col. 1:21-22)

“in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.” (Eph. 4:22-24)

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (Phil. 4:6 NIV)

Anxiety, appearing in the form of panic attacks, affects millions of people worldwide. There are physicians who specialize in it, clinics dedicated to it, and multiple drugs to treat it. It has become a billion-dollar industry. It’s a really big problem! So, what is it basically? Fear! A panic attack is simply fear out of control, or fear on steroids.

Fear attacks are not from God!

“For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” (2 Tim. 1:7)

We are commanded not to fear

The passage at the top is a command from God saying, “Do not be anxious about “anything.” And anything means everything! Many people who have panic attacks say they come on suddenly without warning, and they can’t do anything to stop them. But is this really true? I used to think so! For many years, I had panic attacks, sometimes so severe that they put me in the hospital. After I became a Christian, I found many passages throughout the Bible saying not to fear. There are 365 of them—in fact, one for each day of the year. And think about it: Would God command you not to do anything you couldn’t do, especially when you included His help? I was able to overcome panic attacks by learning to recognize them for what they really are—satan attacks! And I learned to say no to them. It took some time and self-control (2 Tim. 1:7), but eventually I stopped having them.

The answer

The second part of the passage at top gives the answer: “but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” When you feel a panic attack coming on, pray immediately and thank God for helping you overcome it before it gets out of hand. And expect Him to help you!

“I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.” (Psalm 34:4)

Therefore

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isa. 41:10 ESV)

“Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.” Psalm 119:18 ESV)

One of my favorite stories in the Bible is about Elisha opening his servants' eyes to see the hidden truth of what was going on all around him. The backstory is about how Elisha made the king mad because he had been revealing some of the king's dark secrets, and that upset the king very much. So, the angry king sent a large group of soldiers to attack Elisha. But that didn’t seem to bother Elisha at all. But his servant was very much afraid and franticly warned Elisha of the eminent danger. But the reason Elisha wasn’t concerned was because he could see something his servant couldn’t. So, he prayed that his servant’s eyes would be opened to see what he could see—chariots of fire all around them!

“Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” (2 Kings 6:17 ESV)

There is a spiritual world you cannot see

Just as you cannot see radio signals or the wind you cannot see the spiritual world without God’s help. All those chariots Elisha could see were there even though invisible to most.

Ask God to open your eyes spiritually

I never understood the Bible or spiritual things until I received Christ and had the Holy Spirit inside to help me. When reading the Bible I have discovered that I could ask God to open my eyes to His truths therein and then He would give me insight I didn’t have on my own. This made the Word of God come alive as I read it.

You can pray that Jesus will open the eyes of those you’re praying for

“Open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’” (Acts 26:18 ESV)

Therefore

“Having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,” (Eph. 1:18 ESV)

“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (Psalm 16:11 ESV) 

What is joy?

Webster defines joy as as the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires. It can also be a state of happiness or felicity. Some synonyms are beatitude, blessedness, delight, and happiness.  

How do you receive fullness of joy?

The verse at top proclaims that there is fullness of joy in God’s presence and that there are pleasures forevermore at His right hand. This is an absolutely wonderful promise that starts out by telling you how to achieve it, “You make known to me the path of life.” Therefore, you ask Him for it. Jesus said, “Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:24 ESV) it’s as simple as that!

Therefore

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” (Rom 15:13 ESV)

“These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” (John 15:11 ESV)

“I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 3:14 KJV)

I live in a farming community, and there are lots of dairy farms of all sizes everywhere. We also have a huge fair here each year, and we have another big event called a plowing match. That’s where farmers, young and old, come from all around to be a part of a plowing contest done the old-fashioned way, with horses or mules, instead of tractors. You can tell the difference between a novice and a seasoned contestant by how they plow. The rows plowed by the novice entrants are often curved and jagged. The rows plowed by the seasoned entrants are perfectly straight. This is because the novice entrant looks down at the row as he plows it, causing him to wander a bit here and there. The seasoned entrant, however, keeps his eye on a flag planted at the far end of the row he’s plowing. This makes each row perfect, without any curves or imperfections.

Press towards the mark

As Christians, we are encouraged to press toward a mark, and that mark, of course, is Jesus. The prize at the end is “the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (see the passage at the top). Just like the people in the plowing match illustration above, the better you keep your focus on Jesus, the better your result will be.

Therefore

“Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” (Col. 3:2 ESV)

“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” (Phil. 1:6 ESV)

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way as to take the prize.” (1 Cor. 9:24)

“So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” (Heb. 4:16 NLT)

There once was a powerful king who ruled with an iron hand. If anyone dared approach him without permission, he would be immediately put to death. The king had a son, still a toddler, that he dearly loved. One day, while the king was holding court, the little boy heard his father’s voice, broke loose from his caretaker's grip, ran into the room, and yelled loudly, “Daddy!” He ran right to him, jumped onto his lap, and said, “Hi Daddy, I heard your voice! I am hungry. Can I have something to eat?" The king smiled, embraced his son, and ordered some food for him. That is a picture of how we can approach God. You can approach Him boldly in your time of need! He loves you!

“Call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you.” Psalm 50:15 (NLT)