by David Brenneman
"Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation And sustain me with a willing spirit." Psalms 51:10-12.
"Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life." Proverbs 4:23.
"and said, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me; but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of its stumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes!" Matthew 18:3-7.
The direction of the Spirit is where we're to proceed. When He speaks to us it isn't just for us to hear, but also to do. Just as Jesus, after He began washing the Disciples feet said that what He did now they did not understand but they would later on, so it is with many things that the Spirit teaches us. We may not get it until later on.
But guarding our hearts isn't something that is both taught or practiced much in this world. We're taught at an early age to 'go with the flow' by peer pressure. To 'not rock the boat' when we think about taking a stand on something we're beginning to believe in. Another big one is to 'mind your own business' when you see injustice having it's way between people.
We are to guard our hearts. There's more than ample reason by way of just being told by the Spirit through Paul to put on the whole armor of God. It's because from sun up to sun down we are at war with both our flesh and the world. We just don't want to think about it that way, it's too nasty and dark and yes even evil.
The war that's what we wake up to and go to sleep to has eternal significance. It has since Adam and Eve. It's not about gold or diamonds, wealth of every kind. It's not about those things we 'love' in this world. It's not about which version of the Bible we are convinced is 'the only right version to be reading'. It's not about status, of how well people think about us.
It's about where we are in our training in righteousness. What we are doing to say no to the plethora of temptations we face and say yes to the will of God in our lives.
My Mom will tell you that she learned a harsh lesson in the error of thinking about how she 'loved' a car we once had. God took it away is what she will tell you. Ever since that realization she will never 'love' anything in this world in that way ever again.
I hear and see people 'love' things in this world and these are the same people whom I see who somehow don't have as much time for being in the Word of God as they ought to have.
I hear and see people embracing what the Bible says is idolatry. Yet they've believed the lies of Satan and just call it being 'a fan'.
i hear and see the words of people diminishing the value of other people yet they want God to value them.
These are very very big symptoms of people who have never learned how to guard their hearts. These are very very big symptoms of people who don't take this spiritual war seriously. They aren't running the race set before them as Paul did and exhorted Timothy to do with all diligence. They aren't letting go of every encumbrance in order to run the race as the Word of God tells us to run it.
We run with patience, we run with purpose, we run with as few things hanging off our backs as we can in order to run well. When we bring along things of this world on that race we slow down, sometimes having to stop because we can't do both.
The whole armor of God is for our protection and for the fight at hand.
It's not for us to take it lightly.
Another thing we do is blame Satan for everything when it's us being carried away by our own sin nature. We cast the blame rather than take the blame for what befalls our lives and we find ourselves flat on our faces rather than running.
Are you in 'love' with some things in this world? Are you accumulating things in this world that have no eternal value? Are you taking those precious minutes and seconds that you are given and wasting them?
Are you among those who say "I just don't have enough time!" when in reality you have more than enough. You just have to let go of whatever is where you put your time towards.
It's been a very very powerful time this year for me to be intentional about both my morning times with Jesus doing what you are reading each morning as well as my time in the evenings going through 6 devotionals and 4 Study Bibles with their respective notes.
We have to be intentional about our life in Christ. Jesus taught that to the Disciples and we're to do the same. Jesus taught us to take up our own cross and to follow Him, not to take up that cross AND bring a U-Haul for what we can't leave behind of thoughts, feelings, and possessions. Jesus taught us all to not take this life in Christ lightly. It's serious business. It's the Father's business. He isn't willing that any should perish but that all might be saved. We are those whom have been sent out into the world for the purpose of sharing what Jesus did for us to show the world a still better way.
The whold armor must be put on. Not just parts that feel comfortable. David tried on Saul's armor and had to take it off because it wasn't for him. Wasn't his size. The whole armor of God for you is exactly your size. Protecting the heart, the mind, all vital organs. Enabling us to stand firm against the schemes of the evil one.
Guarding your heart means taking active steps to try to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ our Savior. Speaking truth to those things that invade our thoughts in order to bring about the righteous life that God desires for us. Newsflash for you: that righteous life that He desires may not look at all the way you think it ought to look.
My Dear Reader...take this life in Christ seriously. Cast away things that are taking your time away from learning to grow in Christ. Acknowledge what the Bible says about idolatry and those things taking your life down a path that isn't towards that finish line at Heaven's gates. Run the race, finish the course. Fulfill your calling in Christ Jesus. Everyone has one. Nobody comes to Christ to do nothing for the Kingdom.
Guard your heart. Keep that armor on and get used to wearing it all the time.
All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.
New American Standard Bible
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