Your heart is incredibly important. Have you ever heard the saying "follow your heart?" Have you ever watched a friend of yours go through break up after nasty break up with someone who treated them badly, all because they "loved" them?
The emotions our heart feels are very powerful.
If you genuinely hate someone or something with all of your heart, it's nearly impossible to let that anger and hatred go sometimes.
If you truly love someone with every fiber of your being, you'll find yourself doing the absolute craziest things for them that are beyond logical.
Why?
Because we live according to our hearts.
That is why it is so desperately important to guard your heart from anything and everything that is not of God. Hearts can be incredibly illogical and emotional, but if we fill our heart with our love for Jesus, that crazy love for Him will direct us, not our love for someone or something else.
Proverbs 4:23
The emotions our heart feels are very powerful.
If you genuinely hate someone or something with all of your heart, it's nearly impossible to let that anger and hatred go sometimes.
If you truly love someone with every fiber of your being, you'll find yourself doing the absolute craziest things for them that are beyond logical.
Why?
Because we live according to our hearts.
That is why it is so desperately important to guard your heart from anything and everything that is not of God. Hearts can be incredibly illogical and emotional, but if we fill our heart with our love for Jesus, that crazy love for Him will direct us, not our love for someone or something else.
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
This verse is so popular, but I truly think people look over what it is really telling us. Everything you do in life is a result of your heart's true condition. Your heart determines the course of your life. Think about it...
When you lash out at someone, it's because your heart is angry or frustrated at them or there is a deep rooted dislike within you.
If you go back into a relationship time and time again that you know is unhealthy, it's because your heart has a strong attachment to them, maybe even truly loves them.
If you are snobby and look down on people, it's because there is a prideful and haughty attitude within your heart.
If you are kind and loving to people who can do nothing for you in return, it is because there is a genuine love and kindness inside of you.
Everything you do, whether it's a quick reaction to a situation, or a deep rooted feeling for someone or something, everything you do flows from your heart.
Your behavior in life is a result of your heart's condition. That is why the beginning of that verse tells us to GUARD our hearts. God tells us in Jeremiah 17:9 that our hearts are desperately wicked. They are wicked because of sin in the world. We were born with a sinner's heart. But that is where grace and redemption come in. Because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, we're forgiven of that wickedness, but continually reminded throughout the Bible to guard our hearts from the evil in the world and give our hearts to Christ daily so that He can make us whole and clean again.
Psalm 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Every day we must truly seek cleansing of our wicked hearts from God and be vigilant in guarding it from the evils of the world.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 and 22 tells us to "hold onto what is good and reject every kind of evil."
What evils should we be concerned about?
Well, some things are quite obvious, while others are not. Clearly, the Bible tells us not to lie, steal, kill, etc, but the evils that we must really guard our hearts against are the ones that sneak into our hearts through things that seem harmless.
Be careful what you entertain yourself with, whether it's music, tv. movies, social activities, etc. What may seem like or start as innocent fun can always turn bad in a moment's notice. Pay attention to what society accepts as "true," "right," or "common" because there are often hidden meanings within things that we take at face value.
I learned something from one of Andy Stanley's messages a few weeks back that I have been applying to everyday life and situations. He said that instead of asking if something is "wrong or right," or "good or bad," ask yourself "is it WISE?" Sometimes we end up sinning, or finding ourselves in a very bad situation because of multiple decisions we made that were not necessarily "bad" or "wrong" but they were not wise.
So before you get in your friend's car to head out to a "birthday party" or you buy that ticket to see a movie filled with sexual content, ask yourself "is this wise?" "Am I guarding my heart?"
Because going to the party and watching the movie aren't necessarily sins. But what may result (within your heart) from those decisions may be. When we allow ourselves to engage in things that are questionable or acceptable by society's standards, we aren't actively guarding our hearts. We're taking risks with our own well being. To guard is to protect. Taking risks with your heart doesn't protect it. Be wise.
What are you filling your heart with: love for God, or love for worldly things?
Protect your heart by being cautious of what you fill it with.
When you lash out at someone, it's because your heart is angry or frustrated at them or there is a deep rooted dislike within you.
If you go back into a relationship time and time again that you know is unhealthy, it's because your heart has a strong attachment to them, maybe even truly loves them.
If you are snobby and look down on people, it's because there is a prideful and haughty attitude within your heart.
If you are kind and loving to people who can do nothing for you in return, it is because there is a genuine love and kindness inside of you.
Everything you do, whether it's a quick reaction to a situation, or a deep rooted feeling for someone or something, everything you do flows from your heart.
Your behavior in life is a result of your heart's condition. That is why the beginning of that verse tells us to GUARD our hearts. God tells us in Jeremiah 17:9 that our hearts are desperately wicked. They are wicked because of sin in the world. We were born with a sinner's heart. But that is where grace and redemption come in. Because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, we're forgiven of that wickedness, but continually reminded throughout the Bible to guard our hearts from the evil in the world and give our hearts to Christ daily so that He can make us whole and clean again.
Psalm 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Every day we must truly seek cleansing of our wicked hearts from God and be vigilant in guarding it from the evils of the world.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 and 22 tells us to "hold onto what is good and reject every kind of evil."
What evils should we be concerned about?
Well, some things are quite obvious, while others are not. Clearly, the Bible tells us not to lie, steal, kill, etc, but the evils that we must really guard our hearts against are the ones that sneak into our hearts through things that seem harmless.
Be careful what you entertain yourself with, whether it's music, tv. movies, social activities, etc. What may seem like or start as innocent fun can always turn bad in a moment's notice. Pay attention to what society accepts as "true," "right," or "common" because there are often hidden meanings within things that we take at face value.
I learned something from one of Andy Stanley's messages a few weeks back that I have been applying to everyday life and situations. He said that instead of asking if something is "wrong or right," or "good or bad," ask yourself "is it WISE?" Sometimes we end up sinning, or finding ourselves in a very bad situation because of multiple decisions we made that were not necessarily "bad" or "wrong" but they were not wise.
So before you get in your friend's car to head out to a "birthday party" or you buy that ticket to see a movie filled with sexual content, ask yourself "is this wise?" "Am I guarding my heart?"
Because going to the party and watching the movie aren't necessarily sins. But what may result (within your heart) from those decisions may be. When we allow ourselves to engage in things that are questionable or acceptable by society's standards, we aren't actively guarding our hearts. We're taking risks with our own well being. To guard is to protect. Taking risks with your heart doesn't protect it. Be wise.
What are you filling your heart with: love for God, or love for worldly things?
Protect your heart by being cautious of what you fill it with.
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