What We Think We Want

When we want to be something other than the thing God wants us to be, we must be wanting what, in fact, will not make us happy...We are bidden to "put on Christ", to become like God. That is, whether we like it or not, God intends to give us what we need, not what we now think we want.

-C.S. Lewis

Think of three things you would have at the top of your "want" list, if you had one. Admit to yourself, these things have changed within the past year. Due to occurrences and influences in our lives, our "wants" can fluctuate. We are not constant, but instead so shifting and fickle about what we want, it's no wonder when we get what we want so quickly we are quick to grow unhappy because an influence of the world changes what we now want.

Getting caught in this vortex of wanting and getting is something we are all swept away in from time to time. It is part of our imperfect nature. And yet we are called to be like God, who is the only perfect being. He has the wisdom to know the difference between what we need and what we want. God knows what we want. He hears our thoughts and prayers, but he also knows what we need, and our wants do not always line-up with what we need. This thinking goes along with my recent musing about how God may choose not to answer our prayers, for a greater purpose.

I remember praying for some things in college that I am glad God chose not to answer. I don't think I would be the person I am today if my life had taken that direction. I didn't see it then, but in hindsight, of course, I see clearly. I am sure you have a situation in which you could say the same.

So, as C.S. Lewis so articulately states, we better come to grips with the fact that God will give us what we need, but it may not be what we think we want. So look around you and see what you have as a gift from God, and trust with all your soul that what God gives you next will be exactly what you need.