“Delight yourself in the LORD, And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.”(Psalm 37:4-5)

This passage in the Psalm is sometimes misunderstood. Some have thought that it means God will give us all the things we desire in exchange for delighting in Him. Instead, He works in our hearts to change what we desire.

The source of our delight shapes the nature of our desires. If we delight in someone, we genuinely want that person to be happy. If we delight in acquiring bigger and better possessions, we won’t be able to stop until we have enough to satisfy ourselves; which never happens. And if we delight in God, our interactions with Him shape our hearts so that we gradually desire what He desires and values what He values.

Someone said, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” To delight in God is to be satisfied and in fact thrilled with His love, forgiveness, and purpose for us. As we know and love Him more, we want to pursue  His will, we make choices to follow His leading and we take action to accomplish things He has directed us to do.

It doesn’t take a psychologist to unlock the secrets of our desires. We need only to look at what excites us, what frustrates us, and what hopes and fears fill our minds. We can choose, to focus on God, to delight in Him so that He gradually changes the desires of our hearts to fit more with Him.