Today there are so many possibilities. Information travels around the world with such speed that we are exposed instantaneously. We can compare our lifestyles with those of others quickly via the Internet. Looking through the lens of the world, what do you cherish about your life and what are the desires of your heart?

Take Inventory

What you cherish in your life reveals your heart. The longer you live more of your heart is reflected by what you cherish and what you desire.

Think about those things that you cherish in your life now. What does this season of your life recognize as valuable?

A good indicator of what you value is to notice where you spend your time. Much like looking in your checkbook or at your bank statement will show how your money was disbursed, charting where your time was consumed serves to illustrate the value you place on time.

Take a moment to look back over the past week. Scrutinize where your time was spent on each day of the week. Review what you did from when your feet first touched the floor, until you lifted them to get back in to bed. Record the segments of time you were in transit, waiting, at the market, reading, eating, whatever ate away at your time and list it. Identify the quantity of time, by day you used to complete meaningful tasks, then look at the week.

Now subtract that number (the meaningful time) from your waking hours. I know its math, but you are almost done now!

Whatever number you end up with are the number of hours you spent last week on meaningless endeavors, by your own definition. Think about that time.

Tick, Tock…

Unlike the disbursed funds, which you may be able to retrieve, those segments of time we call hours are unavailable for reuse.

We all have the same number of hours, minutes and seconds encapsulated in the package we call a day; tick, tock.

As adults we get to make a number of choices; many relate to how we use our time. Those choices reflect our desires, whether deliberately delineated or haphazardly omitted. Choosing not to act responsibly is a choice too. The focus of your time is your choice and your responsibility, as it is mine.

Take Action

What changes would you like to see in your scheduled? How would you rewrite your time record to deliberately focus on significant activities? How can you acquire the desires of your heart?

What if getting the desires of your heart depends on you? What steps would you take to “make it so”?

According to Mindy Tyson McHorse there are at least 57 things people want. Here is a sampling of her list:

• Big house
• Nice car
• To neither look nor feel fat
• To be attractive as you age
• Visit every continent
• Live in a beautiful, serene place
• Volunteer in a disaster zone
• Have at least one true best friend
• Reconcile with an enemy
• Know that you made a difference in someone else’s life
• Live each day without regret
• Quiet self-limiting thoughts
• Reach a fabled level of success that makes you untouchable
• Have satisfying, regular sex
• Find meaningful work
• Grow old without losing your mind or control of your body

Perhaps some of the items listed are desires of your heart.

Our Maker and Loving Father has much to say about how we can have good success. When was the last time that you read from our Maker’s handbook?

One of His servants, one who slayed a giant with a rock and a slingshot, gave us a perspective on the desires of our heart, in Psalm 37:4 David states, “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” (KJV)

When we delight ourselves in the Lord He will give us the desires (that is plural) of our heart. Hum…then the way we can get those things we desire in our heart is by delighting in the Lord.

Can you find time in your schedule to delight in the Lord? Perhaps you can exchange some of those meaningless activities for something of value.

Prayerfully ask Him what represents delighting in the Lord. Then be obedient.

Time will pass whether you take action or not. In another week will anymore of the desires of your heart be off the list, or will they remain on your list, unfulfilled?

Love,

Deborah

“Lighting the path to loving your neighbor as yourself.”