James 4:1-3 - It Starts With Me
Self-reflection can be tough to do, especially during an argument or fight with someone we care about. How often do we take a personal inventory and determine that we are the source of our conflict with others? Probably never. “It can’t be me; I’m the victim here! You are the problem!!” Yet, James seems to suggest to his readers that this is exactly true in their case. The root of the conflict lies within me. It’s buried deep in my heart.
Our hearts can manufacture desires that can frequently be selfish. We put “me” before “we”. We start to compare ourselves with those around us. It becomes easier to notice what our lives are missing as we find it in others. Jealousy creeps in. Resentment creeps in. Before you know it, we find ourselves lashing out because others have what we want. The irony is we can’t ever have what God doesn’t give, and yet we still desire things outside of His will. We desire things that shouldn’t be ours. So, we covet. Desiring things absent of Christ puts us on a treacherous path away from Him. The flesh desires self-gratification, personal recognition, and clout. It can be subtle. A whisper in your ear demanding you take credit when credit isn’t due. Insisting you should be in the spotlight. Quietly growing resentment. Resentment turning into scheming, scheming into discontent; discontent into quarrels.
James even goes so far as to say that when we do ask God for the desires of our heart, we still don’t get them because our hearts are all wrong. The problem is that we are only looking at our needs and wants through our lens, our perspective, how things benefit us, and not through the lens of God’s will.
We should be praying and asking God about every aspect of our lives. Consistently asking God why do I desire this? Is it for your glory, is it for your purpose? “Or is it for my own selfish ambition. Brethren we can’t have what God hasn’t given us. Period. No matter how much you pray for it. Our prayers to God sometimes go unanswered. I’ve often said a delayed blessing is God preparing us for our purpose. I am learning through these verses that part of our preparation is aligning our motives with God’s purposes. We should all pray for the desires of our hearts to mirror the desires of the heart of God. We should desire to do all things for and through Jesus Christ. He alone deserves the credit. He deserves the spotlight. All the praise, all the glory, belongs to Him alone.
-DW