Asking With Purpose: Discerning Your Desires in Faith
Asking for something in faith is a powerful act. It's a way of expressing our desires, needs, and hopes to our Heavenly Father. However, before we lift our requests to God, it's crucial to examine the motives behind our petitions. Are our desires aligned with God's will, or are they driven by selfishness and personal pleasure? In this blog post, we'll explore the importance of discerning our desires when approaching God in prayer.
1. Reflect on Your Motives
Before making any requests in prayer, take a moment to reflect on your motives. Ask yourself why you are seeking a particular thing or outcome. Are your intentions pure and focused on glorifying God, or are they rooted in self-interest? Honest self-reflection is the first step to ensuring that your requests are in harmony with God's purpose for your life.
2. Seek God's Will
As you approach God with your desires, make seeking His will a priority. Align your requests with His divine plan. Consider how your desires can bring you closer to Him and serve His kingdom. When you pray to live out your faith and serve God, your requests will likely align with His purpose.
3. Discern Between Desires and Needs
Recognize that there's a difference between desires and needs. While it's acceptable to ask God for things you desire, remember that your faith should not depend on these desires. Your faith should remain steadfast, regardless of the outcome of your requests. Use your desires as opportunities to grow in your relationship with God and to serve Him.
4. Live Out Your Faith
The key is to use your desires to live out your faith. Pray for things that will enable you to serve God better and be the person He calls you to be. As you do so, you'll find that your desires become aligned with God's will, and your faith deepens.
Approaching God in prayer is a sacred act. When you discern your desires and seek His will, your requests become powerful tools for spiritual growth and service to God. Let your prayers reflect your faith, a means to draw closer to Him, and an expression of your desire to live out your faith daily.
The Story:
After years of pastoring and counseling Christians, I realized so many were unhappy in their faith. They believed in Jesus, no doubt. But they struggled with finding fulfillment in their Christian walk. Church, to them, was business. They were active, serving on committees, teaching Sunday School, singing in the choir, but they were unfulfilled. I discovered most were unfulfilled because they were not living out the desires of their heart. They had dreams, ideas, and passions they longed to accomplish for Jesus, but they were so busy doing church and life, they couldn't do them. I wrote the Faith Principles as a tool for such people to learn how to stop doing church, stop allowing life to control them, and start doing what God was calling them to do. Since then, many people have learned how to live the faith of their dreams, accomplishing incredible things for Jesus, and finding fulfillment in their faith. If this story sounds like yours, I encourage you to learn more about the faith principles. Straight from scripture, these principles can help you find the faith you desire.