What Do You Really Want? REALLY

⁶ Please come and curse these people for me because they are too powerful for me. Then perhaps I will be able to conquer them and drive them from the land. I know that blessings fall on any people you bless, and curses fall on people you curse.”

⁷ Balak’s messengers, who were elders of Moab and Midian, set out with money to pay Balaam to place a curse upon Israel.^[a] They went to Balaam and delivered Balak’s message to him. ⁸ “Stay here overnight,” Balaam said. “In the morning I will tell you whatever the Lord directs me to say.” ¹² But God told Balaam, “Do not go with them. You are not to curse these people, for they have been blessed!”¹³ The next morning Balaam got up and told Balak’s officials, “Go on home! The Lord will not let me go with you.” Numbers 22:6-8, 12-13

covetous:  1. inordinately or wrongly desirous of wealth or possessions; greedy.

In the book Drawing Near, by John Bevere there's a chapter " What Hinders True Intimacy" where we are like our teenagers at times that we want God to give us what we selfishly desire, rather than seek His will, or demonstrate the fact that we already do.   For instance He says " there are some things we don't have to pray about."  pg 100  Now on the surface one would think....this is ridiculous....we ought to pray about everything.  I'll ask you to pause for a moment.   When you were 14, did you ask you parents for keys to the car?   When you were 16 and raging with hormones did you ask you parents to allow you to have the house to yourself, or would it be ok for you to skip school and hook up with........?  Oh ok......maybe not ,how would you respond if I asked you would you pray that God would put in on your heart to give me your check for two months?   I hope you understand where I'm going.....sometimes we already know the answer before we ask, but the truth is WE DESIRE something different than what WE KNOW the will of GOD is.

So we pray foolishly (knowing full well God's desire), but because we want what we want, we don't slay the covetousness in us.

How is this true in the scripture....well Balaam was a very powerful and respected prophet of God.  He already knew that Balak didn't have the best interest in God's people, so much so he wanted God's prophet to pray that He'd allow him to overtake them.   So what does God's prophet do......pray?  Really, man is wanting to curse what God has blessed?  And Balaam shows you his heart in his response after having heard from God:  “Go on home! The Lord will not let me go with you.”

What is it?  What do you really want?  Do you have some covetousness in your...so much so that you feel like " The Lord will not let me go (to do, to have, to get what you want) with you?"  Just like it's frustrating to you when you teenager asks you for or to do something that they already know the answer....are your prayers frustrating you, and God?  Are you so focused on what you want, that what God wants becomes a distant second?  Here's what God's will is.........that you'd seek Him, love Him and Love people and do so through a servants heart.  Trusting He will provide your needs& desires according to His wisdom & will concerning you.  I pray your covetousness will cease to hinder your (walk with) intimacy with God.  LGLP