Psalm 37:4 writes, “Delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Question is, “Does this mean He will give you the things you want, or does it mean He will give you the desire to want what He wants?”

I used to think about this text very simply, but now I believe the meaning is deeper, that when we delight in the our Lord, our desires change. We begin to desire things that fit with the wonderful life He wants for us, and he blesses us with those things giving us joy and Him glory.

Dear Lord, you promise us an abundant life if we follow the path you have for us. Help us delight in you so that the things we truly desire in our hearts are those things that you want for us. What joy it is to have our desires matched with your will. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:20-22, “But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died. So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life.”

Jesus told us in John 14:19, “Because I live, you will live also.”

He is risen indeed.

As the hymn says, “Oh what sweet joy this sentence gives, I know that my Redeemer lives.”

Dear Lord, Your sacrifice was the price for our sin, and your resurrection is our victory over death. Oh what joy this brings! Amen.

In Paul’s opening to his letter to the Philippians 1:3-4, he writes, “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy.”

What joy to have friends like this. I hope, like me, you do. Friends you have known since childhood, and friends you may have met recently, who teach you, inspire you, bring you joy, challenge you to be better, bring you closer to Jesus, and who need you to help them get closer to Jesus.

What a beautiful work the Lord does to bring us these friends.

Dear Lord, Thank you for the friends you have given us. Help us strengthen them and grow in faith with them. To your glory. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Today is Good Friday, when we remember Jesus’ suffering and death. Imagine this, your coworker steals from the company you work for and you get fired, or your classmate cheats and you are suspended because of it, or worse yet, someone murders your friend and you are arrested and sentenced to death.

That is essentially what Jesus Christ endured. He was perfect and blameless, but took the punishment for people’s disobedience to God, in order to give us the opportunity to be right with God.

The Message translation says in Romans 5:7-8, “We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.”

NIV translation says in verse 8. “While we were still sinners Christ died for us.” This is the foundation of the Christian message. Jesus took the punishment for us, so we can be reconciled with God forever.

Dear Lord, Thank you for this undeserved and unearned gift of salvation. In Jesus’ name. Amen

Paul writes in Philippians 4:6-7, “Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” NET

Simply put, pray for what you want, be thankful for what you get, and receive the unexplainable peace of trusting God.

Dear Lord, thank you for hearing our prayers and giving us what we need. Give us the peace that can only come from trusting you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.