Email to a Friend || Print || Request Reprint || More by Author Achieving Your Hearts Desires by Marnie Pehrson "Delight thyself in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass... Those who wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth."(Psalms 37:4-5,9) There's a door that I've been beating on for nearly a decade that always refused to open for me. I wanted to write a book that would be sold on the shelves of one particular bookstore chain. Over the years, I've submitted manuscripts to this chain's publishing house, only to receive rejection letters. Then I self-published and sent my books to this company, but the door was always sealed shut. Over the last decade I've continued to write on a consistent basis. When I couldn't find a publisher to take on my work, I learned how to do the technical part of publishing for myself. When the bookstores wouldn't give me shelf space, I used virtual shelf space on my own web sites, Amazon and the web sites of major bookstores. All the while I kept knocking on the door of this one particular bookstore chain. About six months ago, the Lord brought someone into my life who introduced me to her sister whose books were carried in the bookstore chain that I'd been trying to get into for years. Her sister read my books and kindly gave them to her distributor with a personal recommendation. After several months of review, they agreed to distribute them and I just got the word a week or so ago that the bookstore chain that I've been pursuing for a decade has purchased a batch of Lord, Are You Sure? to carry in their bookstores! When the time was right, it all flowed so effortlessly and the desires of my heart were granted. I never cease to marvel at how the Lord can use seemingly small and simple things to bring great things to pass. He knows the roads that will bring us to our desired destination. I didn't know that the bookstore chain I was pursuing wouldn't give me the time of day without a distributor. I thought I could just keep sending them books. But the Lord knew how the system worked. I also believe that the Lord knew I wasn't ready ten years ago. My talent needed to be developed and polished, and I needed experiences to teach me a message worth delivering. Had the Lord made this introduction three, five or ten years ago, I wouldn't have had the skill or the message. But when the skills and the message were there, the doors opened effortlessly and smoothly. Psalm 37:23 tells us that “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord; and He delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholdeth him with His hand." It takes time to order our steps. Skills must be developed, knowledge attained, experience accumulated and relationship developed. While God can do all these instantaneously Himself – because He has all knowledge, we as human beings do not. Were He to pour the knowledge suddenly into our minds, it would not be the same as if we had worked, studied and attained it through experience. Too many people give up when they initially meet failure. They put their desire on a shelf and assume that it is not meant to be. They don't realize that if you have the desire, then you have the power. I like to think of the talents spoken of in Matthew 25's parable of the talents as desires. God gives us desires. He gives to one person five desires, to another two, to another one. The person with five righteous desires goes out and works to bring those desires into reality the best he knows how. In the process of striving toward those five desires, he accumulates other skills along the way – doubling his talents. The person with two righteous desires does likewise and then the person with only one God-given desire is afraid and buries it. Perhaps he's afraid that he will fail or that he will appear foolish or that others will make fun of him. Whatever the reason for his fears, in the end, he loses his heart's desire and the Lord's approval. If there is only one thing you learn from this week's lesson, let it be that if you have the desire, then you have the power - the greater the desire, the greater the power. Don't bury your righteous desires. Seek the Lord's guidance and direction as you study, learn and develop. Give Him time to order your steps as you hold onto the vision of your goal. "The vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come the just shall live by his faith" (Habakkuk 2:3-4). A special thank you to Luanna Rodham and Marcia McClure for not only their treasured friendship, but also for being the beautiful doorkeepers to my dream. Written by: Marnie Pehrson Marnie L. Pehrson is a wife, mother of 6, founder of SheLovesGod.com, and author of both inspirational Christian titles such as You Can't Fly If You're Still Clutching the Dirt: How to Stop Worrying and Achieve Your God-given Potential and historical fiction novels like "The Patriot Wore Petticoats". Be sure to download her free ebook Nothing Is Impossible for Those Who Believe. You may read excerpts and samples of her books and ebooks at www.MarniePehrson.com. She also frequently adds to her gratitude column here. The author may be contacted at http://www.MarniePehrson.com webmaster@shelovesgod.com. For more information on Marnie, Click here.