Holding fast to your desires may be the hardest thing you've ever done.
Some of my greatest sorrows occur because I desire so deeply. But, the alternative is far worse. The alternative is to lose heart, to shut down. To give up desire in order to avoid the pain of unfulfilled longings is a darkness worse than pain.
Why do our longings often seem to go unfulfilled? You want to find that soul mate with whom you can grow old, but you're afraid you're too old already. You want to walk in your calling, but either can't find it or sense that nobody wants what you're offering. You know you're not asking for something outside God's will, or perhaps God has indeed said he would give this to you, but the delay -- the long delay -- feels like a betrayal, and you wonder if you heard Him in the first place.
So what are the questions we can ask during the long road of desire?
- Is there something you want to heal, Father?
- Is this an issue of timing - that if I rushed in, it would jeapardize what I most truly want? (Jesus often says, "The right time has not yet come." He knows his heart matters to his Father, so he yields without dismissing what's important to him.)
- What are you giving ... now? In this moment. Help me receive that.