A lot of folks think the definition of holiness and goodness means you don’t ever want anything and you don’t really need anything. People think desire is bad simply because some of the things people desire are bad. They think passionately wanting something is wrong because sometimes people passionately want things they shouldn’t. In fact, the whole Buddhist religion is focussed on eliminating desire, because they think all suffering comes from desire. The problem is that some Christians are more Buddhist than they think, because they also believe holiness has to do with depriving yourself of desire. Here’s the deal: Desire is good. Passion is healthy. Wanting the right things (and wanting them really badly) is the fastest route to holiness I can think of. When Jesus’ disciples were arguing about who was the greatest in the kingdom of Heaven, He didn’t chew them out for wanting to be the greatest - instead, He told them exactly how to achieve it. We’re supposed to want stuff! We’re supposed to live a full, abundant life with passion and desire for our highest pleasure. It just so happens that the very highest pleasure a human heart can know is loving Jesus. Giving your entire self to Him without reservation is the way to purpose, meaning, satisfaction and joy, and the explanation for that is really simple: Jesus made us, and since He’s the creator, He gets to make the rules. If you made up a game or a story, you would get to decide how that game or story works. Jesus made you for Himself. He made your heart to flourish when it loves Him. Being hungry and thirsty for Jesus is the greatest desire you could possibly have.
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