During Lent we spend time talking about sin, and examining its effect on our lives. Sin brings pleasure, true, but also bondage. 

Jesus [said], “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. (John 8:34)

No one wants to be enslaved, yet we find our hearts betraying us. How?

Tim Keller observes:

the true god of your heart is what your thoughts effortlessly go to when there is nothing else demanding your attention. What do you enjoy daydreaming about? What occupies your mind when you have nothing else to think about? Do you develop potential scenarios about career advancement? Or material goods such as a dream home? Or a relationship with a particular person? One or two daydreams are not an indication of idolatry. Ask rather, what do you habitually think about to get joy and comfort in the privacy of your heart? — Counterfeit Gods, p.168

Choosing what we think about is one of the most basic and powerful things we can do. If our hearts are to be fully set free from the burdensome entanglements of our self-centeredness, we must choose carefully, relentlessly what we allow our minds to dwell upon.

But the habits of our hearts and minds are turned only slowly, and only through the power of the Holy Spirit. It has been rightly said no one becomes a saint in a day!

Try this today: Notice where your thoughts drift when you have a few moments alone. Don’t fix, just notice. Notice what you drift to repeatedly. This may take several days of being aware of your thoughts for you to be able to discern a pattern. 

As you begin to notice where you drift, ask the Holy Spirit, “So what’s going on here? Why do I love this? Why do I feel like I this?” 

After you notice and ask, listen. The Spirit loves to teach our hearts. 
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What do you want? 

Rick Warren has said: "Power follows purity.” God will empower those who allow God to purify them. 

David said, 
    Take delight in the LORD,
        and he will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalms 37:4)

Jesus said, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6)

What do your actions say about what you want? (Your mom always said actions speak louder than words, and she was right.) 

What do you desire?

​When we allow God to purify us, he loves to empower us, to give us the desires of our heart, to fill us with himself. 

    Take delight in the LORD,
        and he will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalms 37:4)

Have you ever been out to eat and run out of what’s in your glass before you finish what’s on your plate? 

Here’s what you find yourself doing: You pick up your glass, look down the mouth of it to the bottom, hoping that you’ll find something there you missed. No, it’s empty. Or maybe there's just ice, nothing to drink. So you shake the glass a little hoping that will shake loose a few drops. Really nothing. You look around for the server, wondering if you can get a refill. She’s nowhere. (If you can get a refill, will you have to pay for it?)

That never happens at the LORD’s table:

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. (Psalms 23:5)

Overflows! The LORD is lavish in the sustenance he provides. Abundant food, overflowing drink. 

So if we’re thirsty  — finding ourselves at a loss facing a problem, finding ourselves at odds with a loved one, or having trouble finding our way and don’t know why — if we’re thirsty and our cup is empty it is likely not because God is holding out on us. 

How can we experience the life God promises? How can we know frequent refreshment from him for our days?

Let’s talk more about that tomorrow….
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