Desiring Best Things

One of my favorite passages in scripture is Jesus' encounter with Bartimaeus, the blind man.  This is found in Mark 10: 46-52 and can also be found in Luke and Matthew.  As I mentioned in a previous post, Jesus' question is quite possibly one of the most profound questions encountered in scripture, "What do you want me to do for you?"  I mean that is a deep question.  Most days I have a difficult time determining what I want for dinner, let alone what I want God, the creator of all things, to do for me.  Bartimaeus, however, knows exactly what he wants.  He has desired it all of his life.  His lack of sight has been with him every day of his life.  Every time someone mentioned how beautiful the sunrise was or how beautiful the flowers were, he was only reminded of his inability to appreciate those moments.  Can you imagine going through life without the ability to see and constantly being reminded of that by those who are around you?  Now what if Bartimaeus had asked for something else?  What if instead he had asked Jesus for bread or riches?  What if he had chosen some other desire of his heart?

I'm currently taking a leadership course at my church and it is all about being intentional, strategic, self-aware, and surrendered to God's will.  It is certainly challenging at times and really makes you think about who you are, what you're doing, and what your motives are behind it.  My dad was teaching one of the classes when he started talking about desires.  He said that your desire for the best thing needed to be greater than your desire for something else.  He used the example of losing weight.  He said that if he really wanted to lose weight then his desire to do so must outweigh his desire for that extra Five Guys burger.  That got me thinking.  What desires do I have that are distractions and am I really desiring the best things?  What is my response to Jesus when he asks me what do I want?  Sure there are moments where I do desire the best things, but unfortunately I still seem to demonstrate a desire for lesser things quite frequently.

I came to the conclusion that the reason why I desire the lesser things is because on the surface they seem more appealing.  For instance, when I get home from a week at school I have a number of options.  I can go for a mountain bike ride, I can watch some TV, I can get some work done on my papers, or a variety of other options.  Most days, the appeal to sit on the couch and watch TV is rather enticing.  It requires little thought and energy and unfortunately, has often been the option that I go with.  The problem is that I'm settling for a lesser thing when I do that.  The surface appeal of it attracts my attention and keeps me from desiring the best things.  The other options often require a great deal more work and in some cases appear to offer very little rewards.  The importance, however, is that I must begin to look at the best things and begin to realize the beauty inherent in them.  For instance, if I choose to go mountain biking, I'll be doing a healthy activity that offers a great deal of excitement and adventure, not to mention that I would have a chance to enjoy the beautiful scenery around me.  If I choose to do my studies, I'll be less stressed during the weekend and more than likely do better on the assignment.  If I'm to desire the best things, I must begin to realize the beauty inherent in them.

I'd wager that I'm not alone in my pursuit of lesser things.  Thankfully, God has given us the ability to desire the best things.  He has shown us what is really important in life and has given us the opportunity to pursue that. Each decision we make demonstrates the desires of our heart.  When we desire the best things, it becomes evident through our lives.  We begin to make time for the things that matter and begin to notice the things in our lives that simply aren't important.  Our hearts begin to yearn for the things on God's heart and we begin to move into transformation.  May we, like Bartimaeus, choose to desire the best things.  May we desire God's purposes in our life over the pursuits of this world.