Finding Purpose Begins with Wanting God

“You will search again for the Lord your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him.” Deuteronomy 4:29 (NLT)

The first step to hearing from God is really wanting it. I don’t see it as optional or just a nice idea—rather I see it as a necessity!

God doesn’t want to tell me his dream and vision for my life so I can debate and discuss it. He doesn’t want to tell me what he put me on earth to do just so I can say, “Let me think about it.”

I need to see it as a necessity. I have to say, “I’ve got to know why I’m here. I’ve got to know what you want me to do with my life. I’ve got to hear your voice. I’ve got to have your vision.”

King David wrote in the book of Psalms, “My God, I want to do what you want” (Psalm 40:8 NCV), and “What I want most and at all times is to honor your laws” (Psalm 119:20 CEV). 

David passionately declared that what he wanted most of all was to honor God. Being obedient and following God were not options for him. In other parts of the Bible, David used phrases like, “I long for it,” “I crave it,” “I hunger for it,” and “I’m like a deer panting for water.”

When I get that desperate, I'm going to hear from God.

A lot of people talk to God but never hear from God. For them, prayer is a monologue. But no healthy relationship is a monologue—I need a dialogue. What if I always talked to my wife, but she never talked to me? That’s not a relationship. I’ve got to have a conversation.

Talking to God in prayer is important but so is listening to him and letting him talk to me. How does that happen? First, I’ve got to want it more than anything else.

Deuteronomy 4:29 says, “You will search again for the Lord your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him” (NLT). That’s a promise from God, so it’s guaranteed! 

In summary:

The first step to truly hearing from God is to deeply desire it—to see His voice and vision not as optional but essential. God reveals His purpose to those who earnestly seek Him, not for debate but for obedience. Like King David, whose heart longed and hungered to honor God above all else, we must reach a point of spiritual desperation where knowing God’s will becomes our greatest pursuit. Prayer isn’t meant to be a one-sided conversation; real relationship with God involves listening as much as speaking. When we seek Him wholeheartedly—with all our heart and soul—He promises we will find Him.

Bottom line:

If I truly want to hear from God, I must seek Him with my whole heart—desperately, obediently, and relationally—because when I do, He promises I will find Him.

Next Step:

My next wisest step is to intentionally create space to listen to God before moving forward in your plans.