I’m sure you’ve been making lists, praying about goals, wanting to do better this new year. A time when you feel an opportunity to start fresh. A new day with no mistakes. 365 of them.

I must confess. I don’t follow the instructions of motivational speakers. I don’t write down my goals. Yes, everyone tells me that’s the way to make things happen. The secret to living your deepest longings. To get it done.

{Something inside me just can’t bring myself to write or type them out. Maybe I don’t have a specific list. Maybe it’s so permanent once it’s on paper. Maybe my goals don’t seem big enough.}

Honest? I’d rather sit with a good friend over a chai latte and converse about the stirrings that are deep within my soul. The kind that only start to make sense when I feel like I’m fumbling for the right words, but say it out loud anyway. To whisper a thought that has been noodling around in my mind but sounds crazy even to me. The kind of heart dreams that only God can accomplish.

Lately when talking with other women along my path, I’ve realized that few live the dream God has for them. I don’t feel like I’m completely living in the path and hopes God has for me. That might not be able to happen this side of heaven. But I know I’ve said “Yes!” to many of His plans that were definitely not mine. And I’m so thankful and blessed because of those times of submission.

Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desire. (Psalm 37:3-4)

This verse has stayed with me for a week. Yes, I’ve read it, heard it, and seen it on plaques in homes. But when the Holy Spirit is about to teach me something, it lingers.

This truth equation seems like worth pursuing. An easy one at that. Be happy in God and He will give you everything you want.

{Or maybe not.}

Before this verse, King David tells us not to envy others and their success, even those that are evil. Then, he tells us to trust in God and do good. And finally, he gives us a command to find joy and pure delight in our God, to experience great pleasure in His presence.

I think about who I experience great joy in . . . I really know those people. I’ve shared my life with them. I love and adore them. I can tell you memorable stories about our lives together. Some that will make you giggle, while others may bring a tear. And they know me just as well.

I’m also committed to each, whether as a wife, mother, daughter, or friend. I entrust myself to them and know they each care for me deeply. I trust them with my well being, my body, my possessions, and my heart’s desire. I know they each want the best for me.

So why do we think God won’t do the same in an unattainable-by-us, perfect way? He waits for us to make Him the desire of our heart. Then our desires change to His will and He freely gives us the desires of our heart. {which are now His. . . and ours.}

It’s a beautiful exchange that creates close love with the Father, makes us more like Jesus and enables us to finally “live” for the Lord. He will give you the desires of your heart.

Take delight. It’s not an “if you feel like it.” But a command to take joy in our Lord. To find Him at work. Thank Him for all our moments. To be the bright joy in the dark that only comes from The Light.

When we take delight, we gain the very thing that was our goal all along {whether we wrote it down or not}. To draw close to God and truly know Him. We have joy once again. And something wonderful happens. . .

King David tells us:

Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and He will help you . . . Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for Him to act. (Psalm 37:5-7)

Then God will act. He will achieve His goals that are now ours. Your heart’s desire is filled . . . with Him.

I love how Francis Chan encourages us:

I don’t want my life to be explainable without the Holy Spirit. I want people to look at my life and know that I couldn’t be doing this by my own power. I want to live in such a way that I am desperate for Him to come through. That if He doesn’t come through, I am screwed.

In this New Year, what is your heart’s desire that can only be accomplished if you, “Take delight . . . and commit everything you do to the Lord?” Won’t you share it with us?

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