Two-minute read.
“Ehpithymeo,” translated desire in verse two, means to strongly desire, set your heart upon, long for intensely, covet.[1] James uses this word to describe self-centered, unchecked wants that rule the heart. Our selfish desires have replaced God on the throne. An internal conflict breeds envy, which leads to strife, and then to worse things. We can kill relationships because we envy. Wanting what someone else has, obsessing over it, and making it the ruler of our hearts can cause us to do things we wouldn’t normally do. In my younger days, selfish desires and envy got the best of me more than once. But as I grew in my relationship with the Lord and began searching my motives, a life change occurred.
Not only do we need to check our motives, but we must ask God to receive from Him. Often, we try to obtain things on our own, leaving the Lord out of our plans. Before I centered my life around the Lord, I often put people on His throne. And I suffered as a result, trying in vain to acquire my selfish desires, and constantly failing. Only when I started seeking Jesus for help did I begin to understand I had wrong motives that needed adjusting. The Lord taught me that life doesn’t revolve around me; it revolves around Him. Once I got my priorities straight, I began to develop healthy relationships and profoundly enjoy God’s blessings.
God’s not a vending machine in the sky. We must check the motives of our desires. If we want things fueled by ego, driven by comparison, or rooted in status and indulgence, we have the wrong motives. God designed us to want. But when our wants replace our devotion to the Lord, and we seek gifts more than the Giver, we have a heart problem we need to correct. We don’t need to pray more; we need to align our hearts with Jesus.
Christ gave us our marching orders and told us how to align our hearts with Him: love God and love others (Mark 12:30-31). If we want to walk in step with the Savior, we must make love our priority, and we can do so only with Him. By surrendering our hearts to the Holy Spirit and allowing Him to check our motives, we will quickly identify troublesome areas and give them to the Lord. Instead of trying to do things on our own might, we rely on the Savior to provide. Our desires will become His, and our hearts will align with God’s.
Journal Questions:
What motivates your prayers?
What am I really longing for beneath the request?
How can you align your heart with Jesus?
Application:
Rewrite one prayer request, focusing on God’s glory rather than your comfort.
[1] A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. (BDAG).
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000.
