Are You Praying Lustfully?

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True Christians must never prioritize objects ahead of God or it will kill them spiritually. God says: “You lust and have not: you kill and desire to have, and cannot obtain: you fight and war, yet you have not, because you ask not”(Jam. 4:2).

The expression “desire to have” actually means to covet something. Simply put, this type of prayer is nothing less than lusting for or receiving something. It is on the level of getting, rather than giving.

James 4:5 tells us, “Do you think that the scriptures says in vain, the spirit that dwells in us lusts to envy?” We have human nature that gets us to lust, but we either have God or this world – never both! Lust destroys the true Christian spiritually. It comes from the deceitful heart that is desperately wicked within each human being (Jer, 17:9).

Yes, God says to ask for what we desire, but these desires must not be selfish or harmful to us. If we simply ask for money, power or fame, then these can be injurious requests.

“You ask and receive not, because you ask amiss, that you may consume it upon your lusts” (verse 3).

It’s pretty evident that this type of selfish prayer will not be answered and needs examination. When we ask “amiss,” we ask in an evil way, or in a selfish, wrongly focused prayer.

Is The Day Of Death Better Than The Day Of One's Birth?

Ecclesiastes 7:1 reads, “A good name is better than precious ointment, and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.” What exactly does this mean?

Notice the strong parallel in this verse: The day of one’s birth is compared with precious ointment. There is certainly nothing wrong with precious ointment; Jesus even commended its proper use (Matthew 26:6-13). The point is that the day of one’s death is of far greater importance to God, assuming that our lives have been used properly.

Near the end of his life, the apostle Paul realized that he had “fought the good fight” and “kept the faith.” Therefore he had a crown of righteousness awaiting him (II Timothy 4:6-8).

If we as Christians run the Christian race successfully, as Paul did, we, too, will be able to say at the end of our lives that we have obtained an incorruptible crown (I Corinthians 9:24-27). The day of our death, then, will certainly be a greater joy to God than the day of our birth.