What is the number one thing you desire?  There are many synonyms for the word 'desire'.  To help clarify what we are going to consider today, some of those synonyms are: yearn, long for, want, eager for, be bent on, set your heart upon, desire intensely, and ache for.  Have you used these words in describing your heart's desire?  If I asked you what is most important to you, what response would you give?  If I asked you to list your top ten desires, what would they be?  Most of us, at some time, when asked questions like that, ponder for a while and give answers according to what we think is expected of us.  We might choose to answer with things which are not actually true, if we honestly examine and consider what we put our time and money into.

 Psalm 139: 23 reads, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties..."  'Search' in the Hebrew means: examine thoroughly, investigate, search out.  'Know' means: perceive, discern, recognize and discriminate.  Then, 'heart' means: the inner man, comprehending mind, affections and will.  So, the first part of this verse is saying, we give God permission to examine and investigate us thoroughly, to discern and perceive what is in our heart or our mind, and to know what our affections are set on.  Sometimes, it is good to take time to allow God to do just that. 

 Many people, when attempting to give the "right" answer to our "what is most important to you" question will respond with, "family, home, the Lord , or community service."  They feel the answers they give prove that their heart is in the right place.  If people were totally honest, however, they may say, "my job, money, material things (having a nice house, car, clothes and so on), physical fitness, appearance, sports, food, travel , and today, maybe, having the newest cell phone."  (According to studies I have read, cell phone usage consumes from three and one half to five hours a day of a lot of American's time!)

 A few years ago, I watched a documentary in which college students were asked what their number one heart's desire was.  Most gave a two fold answer.  "I want a good job that pays a lot of money" and "I want it all right now."  Doesn't that sound like the attitude of our 'now' generation?

 Before we go farther, I need to be perfectly clear.  The scripture is definitive concerning the topics of blessings, wealth, riches, and money. 

 We see in Psalm 112:1-3, "Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments. 2 His descendants will be mighty on earth; The generation of the upright will be blessed. 3 Wealth and riches will be in his house, And his righteousness endures forever."

 Proverbs 10:22, "The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it."

 Ecclesiastes 5:19, "As for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, and given him power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor--this is the gift of God."

 God's Word tells us that God blesses those who love and obey Him.  In fact, Philippians 4:19 reads, "And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."  There is nothing wrong with having a nice home, car, or clothes.  There is nothing wrong with being physically fit, caring about your appearance, enjoying sports, food, and traveling.  However, if those things take precedence over your relationship with the Lord, they have become idols.  Colossians 1:18 tells us, "And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence (to be first, hold the first place)."

 Then, there is the flip side of what the Word of God says about riches, wealth, and money.  Deuteronomy 8:11-14, "Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today, 12 "lest--when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them; 13 "and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; 14 "when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.."  There is a warning issued that when your stomach is full, you have  beautiful houses, and your wealth increases that you not be puffed up with pride and forget the Lord your God. 

 Matthew 19:22 and 23 says, "But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. 23 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven." Care must be taken that those who are wealthy not put their trust in riches over God. 

 Paul very clearly points out how we should relate to money in 1 Timothy 6:9 and 10, "But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."  PLEASE note: money is not the root of all evil.  The root of all evil (bad, wrong, harm, wickedness) is the love  of money.

 Matthew 6:19-21, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 "but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."  Our focus needs to be laying up treasures in heaven.  Earthly treasures are temporal; heavenly treasures endure.  Living with a selfish and extravagant materialism ties a person to the earth.  Yet, 1 John 2:15 plainly states, "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him."  We most certainly cannot take any physical thing with us when we face eternity.

 We cannot allow the issues that many are focusing on today (politics, social justice, divisions, gaining wealth) to cause us to lose sight of the fact that there is only one thing that never changes.  Kingdoms and nations rise and fall.  God, His plans, purposes, and Kingdom never changes.  They are eternal!

 Malachi 3:6 states, "For I am the Lord, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob."

 It is easy to be enticed by the pleasures of this world.  It is easy to spend all of our time and energy on those fleeting things which we cannot and will not take with us into eternity.

 Colossians 3:1 and 2, "If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind (direct one's mind, strive for, seek) on things above, not on things on the earth." 

 Hebrews 11:16 and 40a (NLT), "But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. ... 40 For God had something better in mind for us.."  These verses assure us that God has prepared something better for us than what is here on this planet.

 We must allow God to examine our hearts, frequently.  Then by His Spirit, He will reveal the areas where we are sliding, falling away, or failing.  We also need to examine our own hearts often to make sure we have kept our focus, attitudes, and actions on the One who created us for His pleasure.  We must evaluate whether or not we are steadfastly and diligently seeking the One who is our salvation, provider, sustainer, healer, protector, comforter, peace, and joy.  We need to make sure that the number one desire of our heart is for Him, the Lover of our soul.

 We can learn about what our heart's desire should be from the Psalmists, like David, the sons of Korah and Asaph when we look at the following verses:

 Psalm 73: 25, "Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth."

 Psalm 84:2, "I long, yes, I faint with longing to enter the courts of the Lord. With my whole being, body and soul, I will shout joyfully to the living God."

 Psalm 63:1, "O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water."

 Psalm 42:1 and 2, "As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. 2 I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him?"

 They spoke of yearning, longing, having a burning hunger and thirst for God. 

 How does our relationship with God compare to those?

 Where are we in our relationship with God?

 Is it our heart's desire to have the relationship with God that He desires we have with Him?

 Psalm 27:8 (NLT), "My heart has heard you say, "Come and talk with me." And my heart responds, "Lord, I am coming."

Luke 12:31 and 32 (NLT), "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. 32 "So don't be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom."

 Revelation 4:11(KJV), "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created."

 Finally, like Paul and David, we need to set our hearts to please Him.

2 Corinthians 5:9, "So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him."