Faith Friday: Divided Loyalty

Have you ever asked God for something for so long and with such persistence.... and then not received it? You may think, but God you are so powerful and can do anything - why won't you give this to me? You know what He could reply? Your loyalty is divided - you are unstable in everything! If this comes as a shock, good. God is merciful and loving but remember that as a loving Father he needs to discipline us! 
When I read through James 1 and stubbled upon verse 5 to 8, it left me speechless. 
"If you need wisdom, ask our generous God and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do"  James 1: 5-8
Were those times when God said "try again next time" because I was wavering like that wave? It brings to mind when the Bible refers to the lukewarm Christian (Revelation 3:16) and how God prefers for us to either be hot or cold - but why? If I'm lukewarm it still means that I love Jesus most of the time.... God says, but you are unstable and your loyalty is divided. You can never, ever, without fail, be of God and of the world at the same time. It just doesn't work that way. Jesus spoke out about the things that the world did because people needed to learn that choosing Jesus meant leaving behind everything else! 
Think back to my post about being firm in our faith, this is yet another reason why standing firm in your faith is important. God can't trust you with His blessings if you don't even trust in Him. He needs your 100% choice to be His child and define yourself as such. He wants to know that you are wholeheartedly loyal to Him and come what may, you won't be dragged along because you know of who you are! This is the only way that He will ever pour out the full extent of His blessings upon you - when you aren't shaken and your faith is in Him alone. This means not putting your faith and trust in what others can do for you or what you think you can do on your own. You may barely survive on your own merits but it could be so much better if you let God be your guiding post. 
Like the Word says, don't expect God to give you what you ask of Him unless you are willing to say "Jesus, I put all of my faith in you. My loyalty is not divided!"