WAR WITHIN

James 4:1-3 What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Isn't it the whole army of evil desires at war within you? You want what you don't have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous for what others have, and you can't possess it, so you fight and quarrel to take it away from them. And yet the reason you don't have what you want is that you don't ask God for it. And even when you do ask, you don't get it because your whole motive is wrong--you want only what will give you pleasure.  NLT

     Are you at war within yourself? Be honest. Isn't there a constant battle going on in you between wanting to sin and wanting to please God? Don't you want what you don't have and aren't you willing to do whatever you need to do to get it? Think about it. When was the last time you really denied yourself of what you want simply because the price was too great to pay? Most of us find ways to get what we want. There is nothing wrong with wanting things, but we must guard our souls with it. Sometimes we want wrong things and have wrong motives when we try to get them.

      If we want the right things: those things which help us in our pursuit of God, those things which help us serve God better, and those things which enable us to help others, then all we have to do is ask the Lord for them and He will give them to us. God does not want us to go without what we need. He gladly gives His children what they ask for, as long as their hearts are right when they do the asking. He denies us those things that we crave for personal pleasure because He knows that they are self-destructive. We seldom have the wisdom to know what we really need.

      When we are not driven by selfish desires, we can live in peace with others. Quarrels and fights are not a part of the lives of those who are Christ-centered. When those things happen, it's because we have lost our connection to the heart of God.

      Stay close to the heart of God and you will desire those things He wants to give you.