◄ What Does Psalm 20:4 Mean? ►

May He grant you your heart's desire And fulfill all your counsel!

Psalm 20:4(NASB)

Verse of the Day

This beautiful prayer is as much for the pauper as for the prince, for the preacher as for his pupil, for the aged saint as for the new-born babe in Christ. It was David that first lifted up these words of entreaty to the Father, as he sought to worship the Lord in spirit and truth, and to offer his life as a living sacrifice of praise, holy and acceptable to Him. Yes, David knew and trusted the Lord His God, for David was a man after God's own heart.

The dear desire of King David was to defend His people from their enemies in the day of trouble, through prayer. His plea to the Lord was that He would send help from His dwelling place, support the people, and remember them in their time of need. "May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob set you securely on high! May He send you help from the sanctuary and support you from Zion! May He remember all your meal offerings, and find your burnt offering acceptable. May the Lord grant you your heart's desire and fulfil all your counsel!"

David was a prayerful man, who had compassion for His people. He not only prayed for their protection in troubled times, and for God to provide the support they needed, but he also asked that God would draw the hearts of His people to Himself, so that the yearnings of their hearts would reflect the desires of the Lord, so that He could carry out His plans and purposes in and through His chosen nation.

This man of God knew that when the desires of our heart are in harmony with God's plans and purposes, we are living in the unity of the Spirit and walking in accord with His perfect will. This was not only a prayer that David prayed for the people of Israel, but it is also a prayer that every child of God can pray for one another, and for ourselves.

He longed that the desire of Israel's heart would be to place God in His rightful position, at the centre of their life's purpose. David was not seeking after the selfish gains, which are often conceived in the natural mind of an unbeliever. He was not praying that God would fulfil any fleshly desires, but that they would trust in the Lord with all their heart and not rely on their own, human intellect.

The attitude that is reflected in David's beautiful, pleading prayer is of the spiritual man who seeks first the kingdom of God, and has chosen to have the King of righteousness, seated on the throne of his life. The thoughts of our minds and the meditation of our hearts should be in line with the mind of Christ, as prompted by the Spirit. This should be the desire we all have, for when we walk in His ways the desires of our heart are complete in Him.

The heart that is seeking God and His glory is someone who is walking, and living, and praying, in spirit and in truth. He is someone who is working the works of God, that HE has prepared for them to do. The one who aligns their heart's desire to God's desire, develops the mind of Christ, as the Holy Spirit teaches and trains and takes time to conform His child, day by day, into the very likeness of the Lord Jesus.

The desire and delight of the Lord Jesus was always, to do the will of His Father, and to glorify Him on earth. And how it must have rejoiced the Father's heart that He finished the work God gave Him to do. Every one of His children has work to do, and what a thrill when we fulfil all His council and hear Him say, "well done good and faithful servant."

David was a faithful servant who prayed that the Lord would grant the people of God their heart's desires and fulfil all that God purposed in their lives. And what a wonderful prayer for each of us to offer to the Lord, for the people God has placed in our lives.

Let us also plead that the heart's desires of others are gifted to them, as to ourselves, so that the will of the Father becomes the personal pleadings of our own hearts. When our will and purpose reflects the will and purpose of God, and His desires become the dear desires of our heart, the life that we live translates into His best will for us, and we will live to His praise and glory and fulfil the whole purpose for which we were created.

My Prayer

Loving Father, so much of my life has been seeking my own desires, which are empty vessels, unless filled to the brim with You and with Your perfect will. May my heart and mind be increasingly conformed into the likeness of Christ, and may I grow in grace, so that I am increasingly sensitive to Your desires and make them the longing of my heart within me. In Jesus' name I pray, AMEN.