HOW BAD DO YOU WANT IT?

We all have a favorite food or drink, one that we could enjoy day or night. Among other beverages Wendy's chocolate Frosty just calls to me. There were quite a few nights when, I found myself at the drive through at 11:45pm aiming to satisfy these cravings. The funny thing is, I think I am lactose intolerant because it goes down really good, but wreaks havoc on my digestive system. A few days pass by and there I am collecting my cup and straw at the check-out window. You know I have to make that slurpy sound with the straw just to make sure that no drop is left behind. I was doing this one day and it occurred to me; am I really putting this much passion into the real desires of my heart? If God does not see my passion, why would he waste his resources on me?

I enjoy reading of God's power, especially when it manifested in the miracles Jesus performed. There is one miracle that took a while for me to really come to grips with though. "Jesus, did you really have to spit in the man's eye?" Jesus being the great healer, could have found so many show stopping ways to heal the blind man, but spit? Yeahhh! He stopped the show alright. Spit? Degrading, dirty, embarrassing.... but to the blind man who would have done anything to see, it was healing. 

Sometimes I desire things, and wonder why I have to wait so long to see these things come to pass, but am I willing to do whatever it takes. A part of receiving is stretching out. I learned to see Jesus as a gentleman; he does not throw things at me. What if your friend bought you a gift, and instead of handing it to you they just dropped it in your lap? I am sure you would like to properly receive it. Some of us get really hot at the check-out counter when the cashier refuses to  give us the change in our hand. Stretching needs to occur.

God needs to see that we really desire the things we ask for, and desire them for the right reasons. Strong desire does not mean that we agree to be spat on, but sometimes receiving means putting forth an effort when it isn't always comfortable. Maybe I need to choose to forgive someone, before God can bless me in another area, or choose to forgive myself. Neither of these behaviors are comfortable but, the healing produced is ground- breaking. 

Maybe stretching out means turning that plate down to spend more time in His presence. For many of us "fast" is a word that just doesn't have a place in the dictionary. I remember when I first started fasting, midnight to 6 pm meant that I would eat as though it was my last supper at 11:45pm the night before, and at 5 pm I would start preparing the greatest feast. It would be plated by 5:59, I would bless it for the next minute. By 6pm if the prayer didn't last the full minute, I would ensure that the fork was heaped with food as the last seconds went by. As the clock struck six the food was in my mouth. I learned that really receiving my desires, demanded discipline.

Sometimes effort means obedience to God even when it doesn't make sense. How do I give tithe, when it isn't even enough to pay the bills? I' ll just take my bathroom break around offering time. What if God took a bathroom break, when I wanted Him to bless me?

I realize that in most cases when Jesus worked a miracle in someone's life, he required their effort in  some way, when He could have just said the word. They were interactive because it taught receivers to trust even when they did not know what the end result was going to be. At a wedding He changed water into wine by asking for jugs to be filled with water. I could just imagine what was going through the minds of those filling the jugs. Sometimes getting the desires of your heart simply means doing your part, as tedious or senseless as it may seem. Or even when change is not apparent. The Bible also tells of ten lepers approaching Jesus for healing, and strangely He never healed them in the way most expected. To their requests He returned another, by asking them to go and show themselves to the priests. It was during this journey that they saw the evidence of their healing. Sometimes when we want something so badly it is frustrating when we seem to be getting closer but still no fire. We walk away to soon. 

"I am a leper and this man seems to be my last resort. They say He is a great healer yet we approach Him, and instead of manifesting His power, He tells me to go to the priests."  My own " Doubting Thomas" tendencies would would have led me to believe the this man was a joker. What if they didn't obey, and just gave up because they had not seen immediate healing?

How bad do you want it? When you are required to stretch, will you be content to take the scraps that happen to fall in your lap, or will you push. Think of a woman giving birth- the baby is already there, but the joy of holding him/her does not come without the push; painful, uncomfortable, sometimes scary, but WORTH IT!

Anonymous Writer