"Delight Yourself in the Lord..."

 Have you had your Joy Juice today? Just wishing for a serving doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get it!  

We’ve all wanted something so badly that we’ve obsessively wished for it, maybe even passionately prayed for it; and when it didn’t happen on our time-table, we tried to manipulate things, finagle the circumstances to try to tilt the odds in our favor.  We can’t understand why God hasn’t answered our heart-felt pleas.

As we mature in our faith in Christ, we begin to understand that God is not a “wish-granter”.  He is, however, a prayer-answerer.  Does He answer every prayer?  YES, I believe He does. But sometimes He says “NO” or “NOT NOW”. We may not be ready for what we are asking; or it may not be His best for us.  That’s when we have to trust Him.

Look at these verses and see if you can find another reason that delays God’s answers:  

In 1 John 3:22 we read:  “And whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him."

Psalm 37:4 tells us to: "Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart."

If we are not keeping His commandments, pleasing Him with our life choices and delighting in Him….should we expect Him to answer our requests?

May we be diligent in our prayers as we seek to be in the center of God’s will. That is where we will find peace and joy.