Isaiah 26:7-9
7 The path of the righteous is level; you make level the way of the righteous. 8 In the path of your judgments, O Lord, we wait for you; your name and remembrance are the desire of our soul. 9 My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. For when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
I was struck by the phrase in verse 9: "My soul yearns for you in the night". The night, when the work is done and I am alone with my thoughts, is often when I struggle with sexual fantasies. Which unfortunately shows that I am not truly yearning for God; instead my dreams are often about self-satisfaction rather than finding my joy in God. But if we want to walk in "the path of the righteous" (verse 7), if we want to do God's will, we have to truly want God. It's so easy to "try and do good" because we "should", rather than because we truly love God and want His life more than anything. But if we start with that proper foundation of longing for God, the changed behavior will naturally follow.
Lord, help me to want You above all else.
7 The path of the righteous is level; you make level the way of the righteous. 8 In the path of your judgments, O Lord, we wait for you; your name and remembrance are the desire of our soul. 9 My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. For when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
I was struck by the phrase in verse 9: "My soul yearns for you in the night". The night, when the work is done and I am alone with my thoughts, is often when I struggle with sexual fantasies. Which unfortunately shows that I am not truly yearning for God; instead my dreams are often about self-satisfaction rather than finding my joy in God. But if we want to walk in "the path of the righteous" (verse 7), if we want to do God's will, we have to truly want God. It's so easy to "try and do good" because we "should", rather than because we truly love God and want His life more than anything. But if we start with that proper foundation of longing for God, the changed behavior will naturally follow.
Lord, help me to want You above all else.