How much the rich young ruler was financially worth when he spoke to Jesus is conjecture. All we know is that it was, indeed, bountiful. Whether he inherited his fortune, earned it, or a little bit of both, is also speculation.
However, we can see one thing in his interaction with Jesus: The difference between a need to and a want to.
Fundamentally, the rich young man was asking what he needed to do to inherit eternal life, and we know the Lord’s answer. Yet, his want to failed him as he chose not to heed Jesus’ request.
There have been (and will no doubt be in the future) times I have needed to do things in my spiritual walk. Sometimes they were practices to be stronger in my journey, as in the spiritual disciplines. Other times they were things I knew failed to please Him and needed to be purged.
What I have learned, whether in gaining spiritual strength or overcoming fleshly weakness, is that needing to do is not the end to a spiritual step; rather, it is the half-step that must lead me to want to.
When I take that step from needing to to wanting to, change will take place.
How do I take that step?
Prayer. I just ask Him for the want to.
If not, I can operate in the need to, but it fails to last. I can have a temporary satisfaction of renewed strength or even defeat a weakness, but, in a short time, I am right back where I was before—needing to do it all over again.
Needing to simply keeps the cycle alive; wanting to empowers the action that breaks the stunted personal circle into a straight-line of spiritual growth.
Let’s pray together that this becomes a want to day!
