“If you abide in me, and my words in you abide, whatever you might desire, Ask for it! It will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.” John 15:7-8
Human desire often gets a bad rap in religious conversations. Many Christians tend to think desires should merely be ignored or overcome on our way to a holy life. Desire is thought to be something that drives us away from God. But Jesus provides a more positive outlook regarding our desires.
Consider for example how Jesus describes our relationship with him in the passage above. First, he speaks of lingering in his presence, giving space to hear his voice. This is what “my words” indicate. The greek here is “rhemata” meaning the spoken word, not merely words on a page. It is out of this time of listening, something new takes shape within us: “If you abide in me and my words in you abide, whatever you might desire…”
Do you see how that progresses? Jesus anticipates as we spend time with him, we’ll sense new hopes, dreams and desires that we have long forgotten or never realized. It’s not a selfish invitation from Jesus. He doesn’t ask us to spend time with him in exchange for him doing what we want. Rather, as we spend time with him we become more aware of what our heart truly longs for. He helps us uncover our purest and most honest desires, ones that are often hiding from us in the hustle and bustle of our chaotic lives.
ASK FOR IT!
When we fail to give the time necessary to be formed by the love of Jesus, this next step is one we often come up short in as well. Jesus tells us to ask for what we desire and promises unequivocally that it will be done for us. Many times we rush past the abiding and instead impulsively plead with God to fulfill our impure desires, ones that are not what we honestly want anyway. Or our lack of true connection with him makes us timid, and we don’t have the courage to ask him to fulfill even honest desires, afraid it won’t make a difference anyway.
I know I struggle with this. So often I’m ready to take care of things on my own, that I don’t request help for God, don’t expect him to do anything. After all we’ve often heard, “God helps them who help themselves.” But this is bad theology. God helps us all, especially those who can’t help themselves. And when we don’t ask God to show up, to share his heart, his mind and yes his resources with us, we miss out.
Jesus actually commands us to “ASK FOR IT” using an emphatic form in the greek to communicate the urgency of this act. Abiding in Christ is the foundation of a life that gives glory to God. But the actual glory is found in God’s answers to our heartfelt prayers. It is found in God doing in our lives, what we cannot do for ourselves. So ASK FOR IT!
It Will Be Done
Of course, the act of asking is the not the end of the process. When Jesus says that what we ask will become reality, his promise returns to the image of the vine: “You will bear much fruit.” The process of seeing our desires come to fruition requires patience, just like waiting for the fruit to blossom on the vine.
Given time, the desires that you discover while abiding in him will come to fruition. Just like the fruit from the vine or the tree is not seen when the plant begins to grow, so this success in your life comes unexpectedly, mysteriously even. Even we may be surprised to see the fruit that grows in our lives.
But God will not be surprised. It is exactly what the Spirit envisions for each of us and what God promised would happen. It is the realization of the desires God already planted within us, a divine dream come true.
The Glory of God
St. Irenaeus is popularly quoted as saying, “The glory of God is the human person fully alive.” Whether he actually said this or not, reflecting on the above passage can help us understand the truth behind this statement. Jesus invites us into a secure connection with him where we uncover our deepest desires. Then, by merely asking for it, he graciously grants our requests. He tells us that this whole process, “Glorifies my Father.”
We may be tempted to believe that we must choose in life between fulfilling our desires or following God’s will. As we wrestle over this false decision, we wonder if we can live with one without the other. Jesus promises us a life with both the joy of his presence and the joy of fulfilled desires.
While we may not see now how that can be possible, we can begin by believing it is what God wants. We can create the space in our lives to regularly abide with Christ. We can commit ourselves to listen faithfully for his voice. And we can take the courageous step to welcome our desires into our relationship with him. As we do, we will find the path that brings glory to God, and we will come to know that the desires of our heart are safe with him.
For Prayer & Reflection
- Take note of a word of phrase from the passage or reading that spoke to you. Why does it speak to you? What do you sense God telling you through these words?
- Abiding requires us continually committing to be present with God. Think about a time and place where your heart was particularly open to the voice of God. What were your surroundings and circumstances? Did you hear from God? How often do you return to that space? How often might you need to?
- What desires are stirring within you that you may need to bring before God? Do you understand them? Do you feel comfortable with them? Do you need to ask God for something related to these desires? For Wisdom? Patience? Courage? Surrender?