Right about now you may be thinking, “That all sounds well and good, but how do I get to the point where I want what God wants even more than I want what I want?” Good question, glad you asked. In order to answer that, let’s look at an example of a group of people who wanted what THEY wanted more than they wanted what God was providing.
In Numbers 11 we find the Israelites wandering in the desert. Despite the many evidences over the years of the Lord’s presence, they were grumbling about their daily buffet of manna. Verses 4-6 say “ (they) began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”
Moses hears the people grumbling and wailing and is troubled. What really troubles him is that “the Lord became exceedingly angry” about the grumbling. Moses knew this spelled BIG trouble. In verses 18-20 God told Moses to tell the people: “Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow, when you will eat meat. The Lord heard you when you wailed…. Now the Lord will give you meat, and you will eat it. You will not eat it for just one day, or two days, or five, ten or twenty days, but for a whole month—until it comes out of your nostrils and you loathe it—because you have rejected the Lord…..” Whoa!! This is not good and Moses knows that the Lord means business.
Verses 31-34 of Numbers 11 tells us that the Lord drove quail in and dropped them to the ground—lots of quail. As a matter of fact, the quail were piled up about 3 feet deep on the ground and as far as a day’s walk in any direction. The people went out and gathered quail and stuffed themselves. This brought God’s anger down on them and he struck them with a “severe plague” according to the Bible. The Israelites got what they wanted, but they got more than they bargained for.
God’s provision is always right and good. When we demand our own way instead of what God wants to give us, we might be the people of Israel that the psalmist describes in Psalm 106: 15. This verse says, “And he gave them their request, but sent leanness to their souls.” Have you even gotten what you wanted, but were not happy with it? Could it have been that it wasn’t what God wanted you to have and so you felt leanness or emptiness inside when you got it?
How do we get to the place where we want God’s best over what we think is best for us? It’s all about relationship. As we grow closer to the Lord through prayer and Bible study, we will begin to desire the things that God wants for us. This principle is also played out in a marriage relationship. When you fall in love with someone and get to know them better and better, you desire what makes them happy. Same with God. As we fall deeper and deeper in love with Him, we will desire that His will be accomplished and His name be glorified, rather than our own.
So, I ask you—is God’s name and renown the desire of your heart? If it isn’t, He stands ready to deepen your relationship with Him and make His desires your own.
