The other morning I was conversing with my 7 year old son and asked him if there was anything I could do for him. He responded, “No, Daddy, I have everything I need.” What a delight as his Father to hear my son’s statement of contentment! I then opened my Bible and read to him 1 Timothy 6:6, “Now godliness with contentment is great gain.” I continued on to read through verse ten which reads, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.”
“Daddy, is it wrong to do chores to make money?” I explained it wasn’t money that was bad, but the love of money. Then Solomon’s words came to mind, “Whoever loves money never has money enough.” And that’s when it hit me. I said to my son, “You know, it’s true of anything you love in life. Whatever you love, you desire more of.”
At this point, the Holy Spirit was working more on Daddy than my son. I realized the profound truth of this statement. Whatever you love, you want more of in life. Conversely, this means that you can identify the things you truly love by the things you are hungry to obtain (or get more of).
If a young woman meets a man she is attracted to and can’t wait to see him again, it’s a sign that she’s in love. If a man can’t wait to get to work because he enjoys his occupation, he’s in love. A believer in Christ who longs to draw closer to God in more intimate fellowship, is passionately in love.
Jesus put it this way, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21) So, ask yourself the question, “What is my heart in love with these days?” In other words, what is it that you can’t seem to get enough of in your life – is it entertainment, food, money, people’s approval, sexual pleasure, or some other worldly possession or passion? Or are you currently hungering and thirsting for the things of God – his love, his Word, fellowship among his people and service unto his name?
If in the honest assessment of your own heart the Holy Spirit is speaking to you about other “loves” that are competing with your “first love” (Revelation 2:4), then now is the time to turn from whatever worthless idols (Jonah 2:8) you have been serving and turn your heart back to the living God.
Father God, I recognize before you that my heart is filled with desires that are above my longing for you. I now confess the desires for (name those other “loves”) and I ask that you forgive me of my idolatry. Draw me closer to You now through the power of Your Spirit and the shed blood of your Son Jesus, in whose name I pray, Amen.”
