Psalm 37:3-5 states, Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself 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.
There are some wonderful promises the Word of God gives here. In verse 3, we are encouraged to trust in the Lord and befriend faithfulness (live by faith). Almost every person who calls them self a Christian will claim that they trust in the Lord. But I’ve noticed there are many believers who fail to understand the nature of “trust.” Allowing my life to be defined by a faith or trust in God means that I am trusting that God’s will for my life is better than fulfilling the desires of my own heart. More on this in a moment.
Verse 4 exhorts us to delight…in the Lord. To many people treat prayer, Scripture reading, and church attendance as a religious exercise. As a result, they view these things more as a chore than a delight. The reason so many people cannot delight in the Lord is because they have allowed their lives to be filled with things that draw away their attention and love. But it is imperative to remember that you cannot trust the Lord without regularly communing with him through his Word and prayer. We must want God enough that we are willing to sacrifice time, energy, sleep, hobbies, etc. for fellowship with him. If we will learn to delight in the Lord, he has promised to give us the desires of our hearts. This is because our desire will be him! The Lord is promising that if you will desire and pursue after his truth and his fellowship, then he will give you those things.
I am concerned for the souls of many who profess to be Christian yet never seem to delight in God. How can one know and love God and yet have no desire to spend time with him? Too many Christians rob themselves of the joys and blessings that come from knowing God intimately by replacing fellowship with God with the business of their day. Such actions come from a heart that does not delight in God.
The desires of a Christian’s heart will be revealed in their commitments to God. Do we commit ourselves to God on God’s terms? Or do we try and decide for ourselves what the Christian life should be? Verse 5 instructs, commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. Are you committed to knowing, trusting, and obeying the Lord? Jesus has already told you what his will for your life is: to be a disciple (Luke 14:25-27, 33) and make disciples (Matthew 28:19, 20). This is the heartbeat of the Christian life. How are you obeying the will of God in your life? Is this even a desire of your heart? To desire God is to desire his will. This desire will lead to obedience and you will see the Lord working in your life to advance his kingdom upon the earth.
It is a wonderful blessing to live in the will of God and be able to delight in him. What is God to you? Is he the desire of your heart, or is he simply a religious idea? Do you desire to serve God, or has your heart of desire been robbed by the carnal things of life? I encourage you to seek after a heart for God and learn to delight in him. Commit your way to the Lord and trust him. If you will do this, then I can assure you that he will bring a sense of fulfillment and joy to your life as he works through you to advance his kingdom mission.
God Bless!