Delight in the Lord

“Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” – Psalm 37:4

At first glance, this verse sounds almost too good to be true. God will give you the desires of your heart? It sounds like a blank check from heaven. But then we remember what the prophet Jeremiah said: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9).

So why would a holy and loving God grant the desires of a heart that can be so misguided?

Here’s the key: there’s a condition wrapped in this promise. The psalm doesn’t begin with God granting our wishes—it begins with a command: Delight yourself in the Lord. Only when our joy is rooted in Him does this promise unfold.

Think of it like parenting. A loving parent doesn’t hand over candy for every meal, even if the child cries out for it. Instead, the parent teaches the child to value what nourishes, what strengthens, what truly satisfies. In the same way, God shapes our hearts as we learn to delight in Him.

Jesus put it plainly: “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33). When we fix our eyes on Jesus, when our joy is found in His presence, something miraculous happens: our desires begin to change. The things we used to crave start to lose their grip, and we find ourselves longing for what truly matters—what brings life, peace, and purpose.

Delighting in the Lord isn’t a duty—it’s a doorway. As we spend time in His Word, as we pray, as we worship, as we obey, our hearts are softened and reshaped. Our desires align with His, and suddenly, the promise of Psalm 37:4 is no longer strange—it’s beautiful. God gives us new desires, holy desires, and then, in His perfect love, He fulfills them.

With gratitude, Pastor Jesse