Be Careful What You Pray For!

“They quickly forgot His works;
They did not wait for His counsel,
But craved intensely in the wilderness,
And tempted God in the desert.
So He gave them their request,
But sent a wasting disease among them.” Psalm 106:13-15

One noted evangelist put it this way: “You may get what you want, but you may not want what you get.” It is sometimes easy to want something so much that we channel all of our efforts to attain it.

That is what the Israelites did in the wilderness. They grew so weary of their manna diet that they grumbled loudly for good, old-fashioned meat. God gave them their request, but it brought death along with it because of their rebellious hearts. All of us can relate to that incident. After much toil, we finally receive our desire - only to discover that it brought a lot of heartache. How can we protect ourselves from seeking the wrong object?

First, by delighting ourselves in loving, worshiping, and serving God above all else. “Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4). When we want to please and honor God more than we want anything or anyone else, our requests will be aligned with His will.

Second, be willing to lay down your request before the Lord. Whatever you want, give it completely to the Lord for its fulfillment. Let Him be the Judge as to whether He will grant us our petitions. Leave it in His hands. “Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He will do it” (Psalm 37:5).