What would you think if a husband said to his wife, “I will love you in this house. As long as I am here, and you are here, I will love you.”? We might say that he doesn’t love her at all. Why? Because his love for her only exists in one place and not in all places. Now, what would God think if you and I said to Him, “God, I will love you in church. As long as I am here, and you show up, I will love you.” He would think that our love for Him is limited to a place.
In James 1:5-6 we read that the person asking for wisdom to live for God must be convinced that they want to live for God. This may seem obvious, but the reality is that many times our desire for God only exists in one place, but doesn't carry over into others. We ask of Him and seek Him with half our heart, but the other half seeks something else just as much. For example, there are occasions when I’ll look at a menu and make a decision on what I want to eat only to then notice another dish on the other side of the menu and choose that instead. I am uncertain and undecided, probably because I’m so hungry! In a similar way, we desire God, but then just as quickly desire something else. We are not satisfied with God alone. James describes this type of person that is unstable or uncertain in their pursuit of God as being like a wave picked up by the wind and then driven by the wind in any direction. This is not duplicity or hypocrisy, but a fluctuating of commitments, a transferring of allegiance back and forth between two masters, i.e. one day we want to serve God and the next we want to serve something or someone else. We are not faking it in church, but we are not faking it anywhere else either. James goes on to say that in this condition, God will not answer our prayers (James 1:7).
In the end, the divided heart will be conquered.
So what is God looking for? He is looking for a heart fully surrendered to Him. God desires for you and I to seek Him with our whole heart. This means we should always be aware of our sinful passions and we should pray before we go into places or circumstances where we know such desires will arise. But in addition to being aware of our own hearts, we should always be asking God to give us a united heart toward Him. This doesn't mean that we won't desire other things, but it does mean that our desire to please God outweighs and outlasts any desire for any thing else. This type of person becomes like a break wall. Being a break wall doesn’t mean that the waves won’t crash in around us or that the wind won’t blow against us, but it does mean that after it all subsides we remain by the grace and wisdom of God. In every place our desire should be to love Him, to seek Him, to serve Him, and to follow Him. Therefore, James says, God will answer our prayers (James 1:5-6).
In the end, the united heart will stand.
We are either a break wall of certainty in our pursuit of God or a wave of uncertainty in our pursuit of God. Which one am I? Which one are you?
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