Made to Crave: The Urge . . .

*Please note that I am in no way affiliated with Lysa TurKeurst or Proverbs 31 Ministries. This is my own work using Lysa's book Made to Crave as reference. Thank you - Jennifer.*   

There's a question that many of us Christians are asked frequently. "How do you grow close to God?"

How would you answer that question?

I'm sure there are a myriad of answers: pray, read scripture, go to church . . . Those are almost a given.
But at the same time, you can go through the motions all you like, and never get close to God.
That's because, as Lysa says, "God can't be reduced to a checklist".
Quite frankly, you cannot get close to God unless you want to.
The one part of the equation that many of us forget to tell is that you have to have a desire to grow close to God: You have to have the urge.
It's exactly the same when it comes to a healthful journey.
If you don't have the urge to change, then change won't come. Period.

Recently my Made to Crave group has been dwindling.
As of right now we are down to less than five women, and possibly even less than that.
This has been discouraging for me.
We've been told more than once, "My heart just isn't in this" or some equivalent.
And that's kind of the point of this post.
These women will not be successful right now because their hearts aren't in it. They don't have the desire. They don't have the urge.
I can't say that I blame them: This is a hard road paved with ugly stones of the past that we have to face and trip over one by one.
I haven't always had the urge myself.
But what's discouraging is that I am led to believe that perhaps these women have been at this for all the wrong reasons.
Perhaps they've just been in this for weight loss alone.
Perhaps they've no intention of making any sacrifices.
Perhaps they're just fearful for some reason or another.
Whatever their reason, I pray that they come back. I pray for them to find their urge.

Something else I would like to throw in here, since we're talking about urges . . .
This weekend I had the biggest urge for chocolate chip cookies.
These are quickly becoming my weakness, because every time I have an urge for them, I bake them.
Then I eat half the batch single handedly, which is what happened yesterday.
Not only did I give in to my own weakness and my own temptation, but I dragged my best friend down with me.
I confess, those cookies tasted REALLY good.
But looking back on it now, the guilt I felt after eating them, and the guilt I felt after my best friend partook (I felt like Eve in the garden, let me tell you!) was SO not worth it!
But this morning, God got me up (by way of my Great Pyrenees).
It was a reminder to do all the things that I promised I would do every morning, and have yet to: read my devotional, pray, write . . . And God led my heart to this today.

Now, I have a project for you guys this week.
I want you all to make a list of the things that you have urges for.
Food, money, sex, television, cars . . . whatever. Then scrutinize it.
Then, rip it up, burn it, crumple it and throw it away, whatever you have to do to get rid of it.
Then make a new list:

Things I Have An Urge For
1. GOD

Because God made us to have urges.
He made us to crave: God, not food.
God bless you all,