issues of the heart

I love how the Bible always has advice for every situation you can face. I especially love Proverbs. Proverbs is full of the best advice for anyone seeking to live a life of joy, peace, and righteousness. The following passage from chapter four of Proverbs particularly stood out to me recently.

Proverbs 4:20-27

My son, give attention to my words;
Incline your ear to my sayings.²¹ Do not let them depart from your eyes;
Keep them in the midst of your heart;²² For they are life to those who find them,
And health to all their flesh.²³ Keep your heart with all diligence,
For out of it spring the issues of life.²⁴ Put away from you a ^[c]deceitful mouth,
And put perverse lips far from you.²⁵ Let your eyes look straight ahead,
And your eyelids look right before you.²⁶ Ponder the path of your feet,
And let all your ways be established.²⁷ Do not turn to the right or the left;
Remove your foot from evil.

This passage tells us that we need to follow the words of the Lord. Anyone that is speaking words that are negative, deceitful and evil need to be aware that this type of speaking goes against what is good and right in God’s sight. We need to be aware not just of following the Word of God, but also what words we speak.

We need to pay attention to the word of God. We must listen to it, hear it, and not let it depart from our eyes. We must read it and most importantly, keep the word of God in our hearts. What we plant in our heart is most important for out of the heart, spring the issues of life.

What does this even mean?  The actions and words that come out of our heart reveal what we love, who we love, and what we hold dear.

If I react with patience, love, and faith in God, then my heart is revealed to hold faith, love and patience. My heart is responding with what I have held dear. My heart is responding to a situation with what I have planted in my heart and mind.

If I react with anger, bitter words, fear, and chaos, then I have planted those things in my heart.

My heart issues forth the things I have planted in it.

What we sow, we will reap even in our own lives.  Galatians 6:7 says, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.”

If I have not sown the things of God into my heart through reading and study of His word, prayer and seeking Him, then my heart is not prepared to respond with His word into my own life and situations.

Our response to crisis, to trouble, to trials, reveals what we hold in our hearts. What do I mean by this?  When a trouble comes, do we respond with speaking faith, speaking His word into the situation and seeking God’s guidance or do we respond with angry words, speaking doom and gloom or react out of fear?

I have watched many people over the years respond to crisis in both of the ways above. My grandparents will always stand out to me as an example of responding in faith. When they had two children in two different hospitals, they did not allow despair and fear to reign. They responded by encouraging and praying with other parents in the same situations they were in. They held onto faith, they trusted God even as they laid their precious daughter to rest. Had they always responded this way? No, they had learned to do so over many years of trial.

I have also seen people respond to a crisis with fear, angry words, and confusion rather than trust. It led to hurt feelings, depression, and even turning against God. Any response that takes us from God rather than into His presence should not be acceptable.

Our response to any situation reveals our heart and what we have stored up. God asked me: “What have you placed before your eyes and allowed to enter your ears? What have you poured into your heart?  What have you kept in the midst of your heart?” 

Have we allowed the distractions and entertainments of this society to take the place of His precious word? His word is there to comfort, guide, protect, and keep us from harm and heartache. When we stand on His word, we can have correct response of placing faith and trust in Him. We can stand on His word in the face of any trial or struggle and know that our Heavenly Father is holding us, protecting us and has good in mind for us. No matter the situation, I want to respond with faith not fear; with trust not anger; and with peace, not chaos.

My heart has plenty of room for more of His word and even more as I remove the things that take away from my faith in my Savior, Jesus Christ.  May we ever place His word before us and in our hearts.