Don’t Let The ‘Want’ Overcome The ‘Need’

Word-Of-The-Day: ‘(5) Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.  (6) The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.’ (Romans 8:5-6);  ‘<Jesus said,>”But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)

Occasionally, we have interlopers in our house who enter our domicile without asking (likely by entering through the front door when it’s open). Once, a baby gecko was found on our ceiling near the front door.  I got up on a ladder, and with a foam coffee cup and a ‘grabber’ coaxed the gecko into the cup, and carried it outside into the front yard and with a gentle shake deposited the little guy (yes, I’m assuming gender) out into the well-manicured weeds we call grass to let him live out his life in nature. 

However, he apparently had other ideas.  A couple days later, I walked into our kitchen and, to my surprise, saw what looked like that same baby gecko doing the breaststroke in a miniature-scaled Olympic-sized pool that serves as our cats’ water bowl.  I got a Dixie cup and another coffee cup with a coffee cup lid, scooped our swimmer up in the Dixie cup, and then poured him with the water scooped into the coffee cup and put the lid on to ensure he would not escape.  I then took him down the driveway, across the street, and poured him and the water out next to our mailbox. 

Either it was the same gecko or we are in the midst of a gecko invasion.  Unlike insects or other vermin,  I am OK with geckos but there is nothing for them in the house (insects of any kind are terminated with extreme prejudice inside and outside the domicile quickly), so for their safety and wellbeing, out of the house they go.  But if there is a full-scale invasion with several geckos infiltrating the house, I may have to change tactics from ‘capture & release’ to ‘seek & destroy’.  I pray it doesn’t come to that, as I believe all geckos should have the opportunity to sell home & auto insurance when they grow up.   

I will give the little guy credit, he seems to be bound and determined, so if he (and he alone) makes it across the street, up the yard and back into the house; while I won’t grant him asylum, I will continue the ‘catch & release’ should he make it back in (and not have family members with him in tow).  However, I’m thinking like other unfortunate geckos before him, I’ll find him somewhere, in the garage, in a closet or under the couch, dried up and shriveled from the failure to find food or water to survive. 

His desire to live in our house is not what is best for him, and I hope he comes to realize that.  Sometimes we get to be the same way; bound and determined to have something that is not in our best interests, and we need to have someone scoop us up and put us back on the proper path.

Our gecko interloper likely assumed that inside the home (where it was clean and cool with what he thought was a swimming pool he could relax in) was a safe and enriching environment, and when looking at his point of view, one can see why he would want to live in the house.  But looks can be deceiving.  His ‘want’ (to live in our house) is not what he needed, namely access to food (insects & plants) and water.  If not caught in time, his ‘want’ to live in our home would have been his eventual demise (starvation, or one of the cats finding him first and playing with him before eating him).  What he wanted was not best for him, although the enticement of indoor living was stronger than the outdoor living he needs for his best chances to survive.  

We sometimes, like this gecko, are bound and determined to get what we want but fail to comprehend what we really need.  We as humans focus on ‘creature comforts’, and we fall into compulsions and pursue things we desire.  It can be material items (a car, an electronic gadget), a career, a relationship, or a location.  If we act on compulsion to satisfy our wants, sometimes we end up hurting ourselves and others when we find the ‘want’ is more satisfying than ‘having’. 

The new car on the lot with the latest bells and whistles with the sleek look of a sports car is enticing enough to go buy, but after a couple of months perhaps it is not as roomy as your previous car, and it doesn’t have the gas mileage or the ‘oomph’ factor, and the payments each month is a little more than you thought.  The ‘having’ of the desire creates a burden from the ‘wanting’ of the desire. 

Romans 8:5-6 and Matthew 6:33 give us the solution to prevent the heartbreak of ‘having’ earthly desires; run those desires past the Holy Spirit first!  Pray to our Lord Jesus to provide a Spiritual ‘cost analysis’ on what you need versus what you want.  Seek out Jesus and allow Him to have the Holy Spirit guide you to respond to your needs, to have your needs become what you want.  In the example of the car, you may need reliable transportation to go from point A to B, and those bells & whistles may not all be required.  The need may be met with a less expensive but most satisfying car in that it will be better for your stress levels as well as your wallet.

When the person realizes and accepts Jesus, the believer now wants and needs Him, and now that ‘want’ will be to promote Jesus, seek what Jesus wants to accomplish, and fulfill the Gospel message and the Great Commission.  Through Jesus, contentment is found when we serve His needs, and we will find our needs, especially our Spiritual needs, will be fulfilled.  The Spirit will lead you away from earthly desires that will harm you.  You can rest assured your ‘want’ will match your ‘need’ when you run it by Jesus first!