What we need versus what we want.

     Wanting and needing are two very different expressions of the human race.  All people of the planet earth fall into both of these expressions daily.  I need to breath because I want to live.  I need to eat because I want to live.  I need relationships because I want community.  You can make some of your own list but I think you get the drift.  We are a people who have need that are both valid and necessary.  We are also a people who have wants.  I want a burger and fries.  I want a new car.  I want to travel.  I want to win the lottery.  Both the "I need..." and the "I want..." are selfish in nature being both good and not so good.  It's good that we need love and it's definitely a need.  It's good that we want love and it is not necessarily a good thing.  Finding the need for love and taking advantage of wanting love reap different rewards.  One leads to fulfillment and contentedness while the other leads to a cavernous hole that is never satisfied.  Yet, we continue to not take what we need replacing that with what we want. 
     I want to understand my wants so that I can determine if they are really necessary for my life.  God says that he would give us the desires of our hearts.  Which heart?  The selfish one that brings good or the selfish one that brings the not so good?  God doesn't control us like some puppet on a string.  He has given us free will so that we can make decisions for our own lives, our own choices and our own consequences.  Neither does God keep us from indulging in our wants and seeking what we feel is good for ourselves.  Even though the want may not be harmful to my relationships with God or man; there are times when my wants simply are selfish.
     God doesn't need anything from me.  He wants a relationship with me.  God doesn't want to control me.  He needs me to love him and rely on him.  God doesn't need me to be productive but does want me to be productive.  When we think in terms of service God needs and wants us to be in service to him and our fellow mankind.  God wants ALL of mankind to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior of their lives.  God wants ALL to love him and to love all of mankind.  These are not needs for him but should be needs for us.  I find myself pondering whether he/she will be in heaven with me or if they will spend eternity in hell.  Both choices give eternal life.  Which one we choose is totally up to us.  When we consider our wants and needs in light of our Christian commitment to God where do those around us register?  Are their souls a want or a need?  Do you want your family, friends and even enemies to spend eternity in heaven or hell?  The need here is to serve God in such a way that your family, friends and enemies seek God themselves for their need of salvation.
     My dogs need to be fed and are fed twice a day with some snacks in between.  This is there need along with water and petting.  Okay, maybe the petting is a want.  My environment needs me to attend to it's wants.  My garden, for instance, wants me to eliminate the weeds but doesn't necessarily need to have them gone in order to produce.  Unpruned fruit trees still produce fruit.  Long lawns won't harm anyone.  Dandelions need to be done away with.  You see in these examples the minor side of choosing between need and wants.  I want a great garden so I need to weed.  I want a great orchard so I need to prune the trees.  I want my lawn to look great so I need to mow and get rid of weeds.  I want my life to be pleasing to God so I need to read the word, pray and do what he tells me to do.  You see, in the end, it's all about my choice and why I am choosing as I do.  It's the same for you and the rest of mankind as well.  It's always my choice.