Cycle of Desires | Patiently Waiting on God

Cycle of Desires: God’s Blessings Part 5 of 5

God’s Blessings

As we turn back again to the Cycle of Desires, where we are at the point of “Giving Up” and “Surrendering,” God seems to open up His storehouse of blessings and rains them down in a way that literally blows our minds. He wants to bless us abundantly. In fact, John 10:10 says, “I have come that they might have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”[i]

Full Cycle of Desires

What a cycle to take us through! I don’t understand why we have to go through it, but from my perspective, there appear to be two key points: 1. God wants to bring us to the point where we know we need Him more than anything else in this life; and 2. God wants to bring us to the point of brokenness and submission where we are willing to do and be anything He wants us to do and be!

The beauty in the Cycle of Desires is that “dreams don’t come with expiration dates. Taking a circuitous route to your dream doesn’t mean you won’t get there. Life’s unexpected circumstances come as no surprise to God. Instead, you may find that God is moving you toward a dream perfected for you – better than you have imagined. The life you live and the wisdom you gain will make your dream that much sweeter. Maybe that will prove to be the purpose of the delay all along. Be patient. God is not finished with you – or your dreams – yet.”[ii]

And remember, nothing is too hard for the Lord. As He did with Abraham and Sarah, He loves to pull off the impossible. No matter how long it’s been and no matter how impossible it looks, stay hopeful. Your time is coming. Every dream that’s in your heart, every promise that has taken root, God not only put it there, but He has every intention of bringing to pass. Remind yourself that your time is coming! God is working behind the scenes on your behalf. Oh what a sense of joy He must get as He orchestrates miracles in the lives of those who love Him.

[i] NKJV John 10:10

[ii] Listening Heart devotional

Cycle of Desires: Surrender – Part 4 of 5

No matter how much we convince ourselves it will all be worth the wait, we often get to the point where the pain of waiting for our desires to come to fruition literally brings us to our knees. We get to the point we just want to give up. It is here in the Cycle of Desires, we can become bitter and angry or we can surrender our desires and future dreams to the Lord who already knows what will be best for us. Although it appears to be a fairly simple and logical choice, surrendering can be something we battle daily.

Surrendering our desires and dreams to the Lord is really the second act of this drama. The first key act involves us surrendering our very lives to the Lord. The bottom line is God loves each and every one of us, and has a plan for our lives. In fact, He loved us so much that as John 3:16 tells us, “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.”[i]

Unfortunately, we are sinners and our sin separates us from God. Romans 3:23 tells us, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”[ii] Romans 6:23 goes on to tell us the consequences of our sin: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”[iii]

God’s gift was in the form of Jesus Christ, the only provision for our sins. Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins so that the gulf between us and God could be bridged. Through Him and Him alone, can we know and experience God’s love for us and ultimate plan for our lives. Romans 5:8 tells us, “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”[iv] Not only did Christ die for us, but He literally defeated death by dying on the cross, being buried, and being raised from the dead on the third day.[v]

To fully experienced God’s loved and plan for our lives, we must individually receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. In Revelation 3:20, Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him.”[vi] All we have to do is open the door of our hearts, knowing in faith that this is a gift we have done nothing to earn. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; not of works, lest anyone should boast.”[vii]

Opening the door to your heart is as simply as praying a prayer such as this:

“Lord Jesus, I need you. I know I am a sinner. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins so that I may spend eternity with you. Today, I open the door of my life and ask You to be my Lord and Savior. Thank you for forgiving me and loving me. Take my life and use it in whatever manner will bring glory and honor to You.”

It is truly that simple and truly that life changing. My prayer is that if you have not made that commitment to Christ or prayed a similar prayer to this one, that today you will. Make today the day you change your life forever. Surrender your heart to the Lord and watch with amazement at the things He will do in your life.

[i] NIV John 3:16

[ii] NIV Romans 3:23

[iii] NIV Romans 6:23

[iv] NIV Romans 5:8

[v] I Corinthians 15:3-6

[vi] KJV Revelation 3:20

[vii] NKJV Ephesians 2:8-9

Cycle of Desires: Waiting – Part 3 of 5

Waiting

God’s Promises are a signed, sealed guarantee, but often so is the waiting that accompanies them. Like we see with Abraham, sometimes God gives us promises far in advance of their fulfillment to give us hope for our future and stability during our present pain. But He still makes us wait and wait and wait for them – to the point we honestly believe our hearts will explode with anxiety or pain. See, it’s in our hearts where our deepest desires reside and therefore it is the most vulnerable of places for us.

But because those desires are in the most vulnerable of places and are often the most important to us, they are also of utmost importance to God. And He is never inactive in our waiting time, even when He calls us to be still. In fact, He absolutely loves to work for those who will wait for Him.

Although He may not explain all of His purposes to us as He has us in this season of waiting, there is always a reason. I am sure that Abraham would have gladly relived each and every day of waiting, knowing the joy that his son Isaac brought him for the rest of his days. Even though the waiting felt like an eternity, Isaac was worth waiting for.

God has something worth us waiting for too. I was driving to a function the other day, and praying while I drove. Much of my time spent driving involves me praying that I don’t get a ticket, but on this particular trip I was bearing my soul to the Lord in terms of my desires and longing for a family. And that’s when the Lord laid it on my heart, “I am making you wait because there is something worth waiting for.” There is something worth waiting for. It’s kind of hard to argue with that, and so I have no choice but to wait.

There are days I feel much like I am sure Sarai felt….a bit past my prime in terms of the timeline of my hopes and dreams…a bit on the wrong side of where I would like to be. But that’s when God does something to remind me of the promises He has given me. That’s when He reminds me that my waiting will produce a joy that I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

Cycle of Desires: God’s Promises – Part 2 of 5

Our God-given desires are bolstered by God’s Promises. Psalm 37:4 says, “Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.”[i] This is God’s precious Promise to us…that when we delight ourselves in Him, He will give us the very desires of our heart.

Psalm 145:19 reiterates that promise by telling us that “He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him.”[ii] I have always been encouraged by the fact that both verses use the word “desires” and not the word “desire.” I would hate to have to narrow my desire list down to my one or two favorites!

But I am even more encouraged by the fact that no desire is ever placed in us by the Holy Spirit unless He intends to fulfill it. He isn’t putting desires in our hearts just so He can squash our hopes and dreams like little bugs. No! He breathes heavenly life into our hearts so we continue to look forward with hope to the fulfillment of those things we long for the most.

We have a perfect example of God delivering on His Promises with Abraham. God promised Abraham in Genesis 12:1-2 that he would be the father of a “great nation”, and yet the months turned into years with no sign of fatherhood on the horizon.[iii] Eventually, Abraham bore a son with Hagar, but God again told him in Genesis 15:4, “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.”[iv] Again, more years pass by with no son. At this point, the Lord called out to Abraham and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them…. [s]o shall your offspring be.”[v]

The years continue to drag on and at this point Abraham is 100 years old and Sarai, his wife, is 90 years old. Now granted, people lived very long lives back in this day and age. Even with that in mind, the 90-100 age range would not have one classified as a “spring chicken.” In fact, at this point in her life, Sarai was medically unable to bear a child.

But God perhaps knowing how human doubt can creep in, again returned to Abraham and said, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.¹⁶I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”

Not only was God specific about the blood line that would come from Sarah’s womb, he was also specific about the WHO and the WHEN. In terms of the WHO, God had specific instructions for Abraham regarding the boy’s name, saying “your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac.^”[vi] In terms of the WHEN, God was even specific in the timing saying,^“I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”[vii]

In all, God came to Abraham four different times to reinforce His Promise for Abraham’s future. And those promises all came true…down to the very last detail. Even when everything looked bleak and the sun had set on what was medically possible, God’s promise was a guarantee.

[i] NIV Psalm 37:4

[ii] NIV Psalm 145:19

[iii] NIV Genesis 12:1-2

[iv] NIV Genesis 15:4

[v] NIV Genesis 15:5

[vi] NIV Genesis 17:15-19

[vii] NIV Genesis 18:10-14

Cycle of Desires: God Given Desires – Part 1 of 5

One of the hardest things to do is to wait for the deepest desires and longings of our hearts to be fulfilled. We know that God is the Giver of Dreams and the One who has placed desires deep inside each one of our hearts. He has given us gifts, skills, and talents that we dream about using in different ways. He even gives us dreams about our future in terms of relationships and family. I am convinced that God allows desires to rise up at different times in different seasons of our lives. When we think about it, God perfectly times those desires in our lives. As an example, when we were in high school, our desire was to have fun, get good grades, and participate in different school activities. We weren’t focused on landing the right job, finding our mate, buying a house, or starting a family. Those type of desires would come, but they would come at the right time and in the right season. Sometimes the season is quickly upon us, and our desires hit with such urgency it is hard to fathom. It is almost as if the Lord literally allows them to be awakened out of a deep sleep. And we cry out to the Lord to have those desires met. I believe there is a process that we often go through that I will label the Cycle of Desires (Figure 1) that begins with those God-given desires.

Figure 1: Cycle of Desires

More on the Cycle of Desires later this week…….