In Psalms, chapter thirty-seven, verse four, to delight thyself in the Lord is to desire and enjoy the nearness of His presence and the truth and righteousness of His Word, as in Job twenty-two, verse six, Job twenty-seven, verse ten, and Isaiah fifty-eight, verse fourteen. To those who delight themselves in the Lord, God gives the desire of their hearts. God will answer the cry of our hearts if our desires are by His will. When we delight ourselves in God and His will, God Himself places desires within our hearts that He sets out to fulfill, as in Philippians two, verse thirteen.
God’s grace works in His children to produce the desire and power to do His will. However, God’s work is not one of compulsion or irresistible grace. The work of grace within us (as in Philippians one, verse six, First Thessalonians five, verse twenty-four, Second Timothy four, verse eighteen, and Titus three, verses five through seven) is always dependent on our cooperation and response in faith, as in Philippians two, verses twelve, fourteen through sixteen, Romans four, verse sixteen, and Romans five, verse two, respectively.
The secret of answered prayer is remaining in Christ. The more intimate our life in Christ is through prayer, fasting, worship, and meditation on and study of the Scriptures, the more our prayers will be in line with Christ’s nature and words, and the more effective our prayers will be. However, there are some conditions to achieve this goal, which begins with the verse before the theme in verse three: “Trust in the LORD, and do good.” Sin cannot be in the way for this to be accomplished in a believer’s life. Ungodly ways and motives could affect the result of godly endeavors and knowing the will of God. Light does not mix with darkness.