Mind Your Heart

"Guard your heart

above all else

for it determines the course of your life."

-Proverbs 4:23

I opened my Bible this morning, and found this verse was my daily reading.

And then, it was in a book I read later. And in a quote on Pinterest I stumbled upon. And in a tweet by a friend. So mid-afternoon, I stopped and said - "Okay, Lord...I'm listening!" Actually, the topic of guarding my heart has been on my heart lately (redundant much?!) And I pulled out an old book which reminded,

"We must police our hearts with

faithful,

silent regularity."

And went on to tell a story that I'd like to share with you...

"An elderly, quiet forest dweller once lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slopes of the Alps. Many years ago, the town council had hired this old gentleman as Keeper of the Spring to maintain the purity of the pools of water in the mountain crevices. The overflow from these pools ran down the mountainside and fed the lovely spring which flowed through the town. With faithful, silent regularity, the Keeper of the Spring patrolled the hills, removed the leaves and branches from the pools, and wiped away the silt that would otherwise choke and contaminate the fresh flow of water.

By and by, the village became a popular attraction for vacationers. Graceful swans floated along the crystal-clear spring, the mill wheels of various businesses located near the water turned day and night, farmlands were naturally irrigated, and the view from restaurants sparkled.

Years passed. One evening the town council met for its semiannual meeting. One evening the town council met for its budget, one man's eye caught the salary paid the obscure Keeper of the Spring. 'Who is this old man?' he asked indignantly. 'Why do we keep paying him year after year? No one ever sees him. For all we know, this man does us no good. He isn't necessary any longer!' By a unanimous vote, the council dispensed with the old man's services.

For several weeks, nothing changed. But by early autumn, the trees began to shed their leaves. Small branches snapped off and fell into the pools, hindering the rushing flow of sparkling water. One afternoon, someone noticed a slight yellow-ish brown tint in the spring. A few days later, the water had darkened even more. Within a week, a slimy film covered sections of the spring. The mill wheels moved slowly; some finally ground to a halt. Businesses located near the water closed. The swans migrated to fresher waters far away, and tourists no longer visited the town. Eventually, the clammy fingers of disease and sickness reached deeply into the village.

The shortsighted town council enjoyed the beauty of the spring but underestimated the importance of guarding its source. We can make the same mistake in our lives. Like the Keeper of the Spring who maintained the purity of the water, you and I are the Keepers of Our Hearts. We need to consistently evaluate the little things that contaminate us. As God reveals our wrong attitudes, longings, and desires, we must remove them from our hearts."

-by Joshua Harris, book here.

This story is such a reminder for me. Guarding what comes into our eyes and ears can seem meaningless. "What's wrong with watching this one music video?" or flipping through channels and stopping on that one funny show - it won't hurt just one time, right? Logging onto this website or watching that movie? But I am finding that all the things we put into our heart and mind, one by one, truly do change and alter how we think, act, and what we believe.

Sometimes, I find myself getting "lax" in what I watch, listen to, read. Slowly but surely, the things we watch and listen to can undermine what we truly believe. They allow little whispers into our once-steady minds that say, "It's okay just this once..." and "Don't be over the top..." and instead of remembering truth and what God says in the Bible, we are influenced in our thinking by what the culture says - the lies of the Enemy that ultimately will kill, steal, and destroy what God wants for us - His best.

As hard as it can sometimes be, I want to be more faithful in guarding what comes into my heart and mind. Being careful about what I watch, listen to, look at, and read. Forgetting what other people say is "okay" to watch, "fine" to listen to...and listen to what the Lord lays on my heart - what He convicts me of.

"May the words of my mouth

and the meditations of my heart

be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord."

-Psalm 19:14

Remember that...

 "God is greater than our hearts, and knows everything."

-1 John 3:20.

What a comfort to know, even when we fail and fall - He is greater and with mercy and grace, gives us the strength to guard our hearts and fill them with what pleases Him.

May this be our prayer:

"Teach my Your way, O Lord

and I will walk in Your truth.

Give me an undivided heart,

that I may fear Your name."

-Psalm 86:11

in everything you do...

mind your heart!

Resounding Faithfulness

Yesterday afternoon I spent some time reading through my journal and my blog from the end of last summer up until now. And it did take a solid chunk of time... But spelled out within those pages is quite the journey, let me tell you. In pouring over my struggles, triumphs, lamentations, joys and questions from the past year, I saw growth. I saw prayers answered. I saw God's faithfulness. A part of me wishes I could go through and give a follow-up post for all the things I wrote here that God responded to.
It would take me ages.
The most reoccurring question throughout the whole year was, "What is the matter with me?"
Cried out because i didn't feel valued or good enough or smart enough. But generally it was cried out in regards to me repeatedly not trusting completely in God's plan, which seems to have been, in no uncertain terms, my theme for the past year. My own naivety has been a source of almost constant amazement; I'm so small and insignificant and inadequate and unaware. Which I'm capable of spotting from three and a half miles away on my own, but when contrasted against the overwhelming majesty of God....... Yeah. I'm essentially nothing. And contrary to the general consensus of the American public, I've learned that this is, in fact, a wonderful thing.What an awesome god we serve.

Unconditional. Sacrificial. Patient. True.

Hi Daddy,

Have i ever told you that you're the most perfect dad, a daughter could ever wish for? Well, yes you are. I could not imagine life without your teachings, wisdom and trainings. You have taught me the value of hard work, perseverance and faith in God; and even if you have not taught me, your life is a living testimony to it all.
You've always been there for me, and you always give me the benefit of the doubt and I really appreciate that. As I've grown up I don't always agree with you and mom, but you always help me talk through it and you respect my thoughts.
I can honestly say that if I did not have a Dad as caring and loving as you are, one that understands and only wants the best for me, I wouldn't be who I am today.
Your care for me brings into sharp focus the love of Our Savior. Unconditional. Sacrificial. Patient. True. Serving. Consistent. Present. Your courage has brought me to raise my own heart up in praise before mankind. Your transparent confession of sin and weakness has inclined me to retreat into Christ’s righteousness at the sight of my own. I haven't just copied your faith, But i've sincerely found the Lord Jesus Christ as my own.
God is who makes us what we are, but He used your amazing fatherly aspects to make me so much of who I am, and that affects my whole life. I have heard it said that you are made up of the people you come in contact with. I know that is true because I caught your zest for life, your positive outlook, your passion for family, and your drive to do things and go for it.
Thank you, Daddy, for teaching me these things through how you live your life. I just want you to know that I think the world of you and love you so much.
I could go on and on, but I must stop some time. Dad, you have affected my life more than you will ever know. I praise God for you every day.
Happy fathers day!

Your adoring daughter,
Anna

Forgiveness... pass it on. -marjolein dijkstra

Define Love.

There's something i want you to do before you read any further.
I want you to take a minute and think about love.
Define it.

There's this quote i keep seeing.. "Falling in Love Only Takes About a Fifth of a Second."
One fifth of a second my butt.
That quote is all over. A few of my friends have been using it too.
 Ive really thought about it and come to the conclusion that what really helps determine your feelings on that quote is your definition of love.

Girls drive me crazy...
they seem to confuse love and infatution.
"Oh love.. you know, its when you think someone is hot, and they can make you laugh, and you can trust them, and you want someone to make you not feel lonely."
Hold up, wait what? Really? Is that all? Because ive been raised to see it a little differently.

1st Corinthians 13:4-8
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

That is what the Bible says about love. That's what i've been taught. Ive been so loved in my life that i cant imagine seeing it any differently. Im so blinded by Gods love, and that makes it hard for me to see people reacting differently and seeing love as such a puny force or infatuation. Love is so much bigger, so much louder than that.

If you never realize how valued, accepted, and loved you are by your Father, you will constantly look for it from other people. You will constantly think and wonder why, “nobody loves me”, “my needs aren’t getting met”, “my parent’s don’t value me”, “nobody cares”, and on and on. You’ll pursue relationships for what you can get rather than what you can give. In fact, you won’t even give unless you are sure you can get it back. You’ll treat people based on how much they value you, rather than how much value you can give them. You’ll get your sense of significance from the opinion everybody around you so you end up laying down your life to please each opinion to the point where you no longer even have an identity because you’ve allowed 50 people to define you. And then you basically end up making people your “lord” because you’ve given your life to please them and cater to their opinions. That’s what happens when you allow people define your worth, when you allow a man’s voice to determine your significance… you’ll constantly live in fear as to whether you’ll be accepted or not. That’s what happens when you don’t know how already valued, accepted, and loved you are by your Father. You have to understand that He paid a price… and He believed that what He was buying was worth the price. He sees value in you, you are significant in His eyes, but if you don’t believe it, then you’ll always be craving the attention and approval from a boyfriend/girlfriend, from parents, from leaders, and you’ll never feel like you “measure up” unless you hear it from someone.

Stop searching for your acceptance and love and attention from a boyfriend or girlfriend.
Hear from God.
“You are my beloved. In YOU I am well pleased.”

Don’t believe the other lies.
Don’t sell yourself short.
Don’t base your worth on what others have said.
Don’t get your identity from your past failures or shortcomings.
You are not the summation of everyone else’s opinion.
You were made in the image of God, formed into a glorious creation, you are His masterpiece, He has called you to a royal priesthood.

The King of Kings has called YOU His temple.
You can boldly approach Him.
To believe any less is to believe a lie.
Do not let any opinion influence you more than the opinion of the one Who made you.
He loves you more than any man ever will. The only true real perfect love comes from God, so dont go searching for that acceptance and love from every boy that will give you an ounce of attention. Dont try and fill that need to be loved with boys who arent worth your time.. Your heart is Gods. Your heart is SACRED.

So ill ask again... define love.

Her life was beautiful from the outside,
but the inside was empty.
That emptiness was constantly being filled with more emptiness
in an attempt to fill the cracks.
The more it was filled the bigger the emptiness became,
until one day when love was finally found.
Not that puny infatuation stuff,
but real love.
Love that overcame all wrongs.
Love that saved.
The secret ingredient was love.

1st Corinthians 13

Something I've learned this year is this: it's not actually as black and white as I'd like it to be.

from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll:
'Stigand, the patriotic archbishop of Canterbury, found it advisable — "'
'Found what?' said the Duck.
'Found it,' the Mouse replied rather crossly: 'of course you know what "it" means.'
'I know what "it" means well enough, when I find a thing,' said the Duck: 'it's generally a frog or a worm. The question is, what did the archbishop find?'

To "it", in this case, I might ascribe the meaning of the word "salvation", or perhaps "spiritual maturity" or "being a Christ-follower". I'm not talking about myself, here, so everyone can take a nice deep breath... I'm very secure in my salvation, my own understanding of maturity as it's described in the New Testament, and how I'm called to live my life in a way that's worthy of being labeled as a Christ-follower. But wherein lies the diction of these things? My own understanding of them comes from my life, my experiences, my education, doesn't it? And I'd like to think my understanding is as close to truth, as close to scripture as it can be...

I meet people who don't think the bible is to be taken literally, and others who would use the church as a happy, social part of life (and if at any point it doesn't fit that need, they don't hesitate to jump ship.) And I meet people who talk about loving Jesus, but not feeling a need to study scriptures or grow in their understanding of God, and still others who have all the head knowledge in the world about God and the bible, but I don't see it affecting their lives-- their actions and words and general behavior-- I don't see the change in their hearts, not even a little bit. I'm talking about the people I meet and interact with, the people around me who, like so many Americans, call themselves 'Christians' but really don't seem to be. After pondering for a few days, I've come upon the reason things seem grey:

I'm a crappy judge.

1 Samuel 16:7
"Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

There are cases, most definitely, when I can tangibly see evidence of whether or not a person has been redeemed. I gaze upon a completely misconstrued understanding of God and of the cross, or I look at the fruit of a Christian's life out of which the love of God overflows. But the thing is, I don't actually know. I only know where my own heart is; I can only be sure of my own salvation. And the people whose theology is perhaps twisted and skewed-- deviating from scriptures and what I know to be truth-- I will never truly know the condition of their hearts until I see them in heaven-- or I don't.

And I'm not here to discuss how we do or don't really know if people are saved, I'm here to talk about the practical application of my non-informedness. It breaks my heart... More than anything, I want to gush truth into these peoples' lives. I want them to see where they have erred and I want them to experience the joy of redemption and freedom in Christ, and of growing in their understanding of God. But pelting them with scripture and theology and apologetics, is that really what's best? What's most effective? What Christ would've done?

from Come Around by Jimmy Needham:
Maybe for a minute I can get back to the heart of it
Sure I've got zeal, but does love have a part in it?
Passionate words and beautiful phrases
They just don't mean much if I don't have Jesus in it
We pass out paper facts all week but they won't come around
We can debate theology but they won't come around Apologetic reasoning, but they won't come around, come around
There's only one way they'll come
and it's love.