Desires vs. Beliefs

I've been thinking a lot today about the things we choose to forgo or lay aside, and the reasons for those choices. 2008 was a year of laying aside of self for me. Actually that process started in July of 2006, but that's a long story. I have had many desires that I have had to choose to lay aside during this time, and there have been many reasons for them.

One of those reasons is because the Lord wanted something else and made that very clear to me. While I may try to hang on to my desires for a time against His will, I eventually realize that what He has is better, and fighting against Him only hurts our relationship and my situation.

A second reason is that my desire is sinful, and must be turned away from in order to preserve my right standing with the Lord.

A third reason is that my desires contradict those of someone I love. In those cases, I may choose to lay aside what I want in order to make room for something that is important to them. Many people have also done this in return for me, and I know firsthand the blessing it can be on either side.

Another reason is that not everything fits. There is not enough time to do everything we want to do with everyone we want to do it. That's just life. Schedules conflict, and we have to make choices. This usually results in having to make a choice between two very good things, so we still get to do something that we desire, just not everything.

There are probably many other reasons I could list, but for the sake of space, I'll stop with those. That's because I also want to address beliefs. Everybody has deep-seated beliefs that guide their decision-making, their feelings about issues, and the way they look at others. Because I am a Christian, my belief is that the Bible is the infallible Word of God and should guide every thought I think and action I take. It should be the center of my worldview and the source by which I judge the truth, or lack thereof, in the world around me, as well as who or what I choose to support. Obviously, I fail at this many times, but I strive for it regardless.

There should be major differences between desires and beliefs, especially in the life of a Christ-follower. Because we are human, our desires can be good or bad, Godly or fleshly, depending on the state of our heart. If we are firmly rooted in the truth of the Word, though, our beliefs should never change. They should never be yielded to anything, no matter how attractively it is packaged. We should never make the statement, as I heard this month from a well-respected (no longer by me) Christian professor as he tried to justify his support of certain sinful behavior, "It's just a couple small parts of the Bible. We can ignore them and focus on the rest."

There have been times in my life where I have ignored my belief in what I know is truth to feed my own sinful desires, and I know first hand how destructive that is. Thankfully, I have a husband, friends and family who recognize and confront those things and help me get back on the path of truth. Although it is difficult to lay aside my desires, that is something I am willing to do when necessary, especially to preserve my relationship with the Lord and other people. I pray, though, that I will never again lay aside the truth for what feels good to me or to other people.