Guard Your Heart

This week I'm home for Spring Break, and today I decided to go through my super-old desktop computer's files to clean it out a little.  It's always interesting to look back at things I wrote years ago.  Sometimes my old writing is hilarious, and other times it's just embarrassing. Occasionally, though, it's actually pretty insightful.  That's the case for one document I came across a few minutes ago.  My guess is, I wrote this at about age 16:

"Guard your heart."

We hear this over and over, but do we think about it daily? Do we make a conscious effort to say no to things that will corrupt our hearts? 

I don't just mean R-rated movies, or profane music, or drugs, or going to far in a relationship. 

 What I want you to guard your heart against this week, all day, every day, is negative attitudes, hurtful thoughts, and dishonesty-- the little things.  Keep your heart pure.   

I don't mean "kind of focus on it a little extra." NO. I mean go all out!  If you want to further your relationship with God, you need to "Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life" (Proverbs 4:23).  Think about that.  I mean, really.  It's a big deal.   

2 Chronicles 16:9 says that the eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.   If you find yourself unable to worship the Lord fully and don't know why, you probably haven't been guarding your heart.  You're chasing after things that will NEVER satisfy; in a relationship with God, but flirting with the devil. The problem? You cannot serve two masters (See Matthew 6:21-24).

So this week, do what we should ALL do EVERY week, and watch as it transforms you and your relationship with God.  This week, guard your heart. 

Wow.  What if we really did live that out every single day?  What if we took every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5)? What would our relationships with our Father look like if we guarded our hearts like that?

"Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth." -Colossians 3:2

Fervently. Ardently. Constantly.

Let's pursue that.