She was over eighty years old and went to work every day. Though old in years, she was young at heart. She made her way through life in a wheelchair and was very successful in several different business ventures. She was also well-known for being involved in doing kind things for others who were going through difficult times. 

“What caused you to end up in a wheelchair?” asked a friend one day. 

“Infantile paralysis,” she replied. 

“My goodness! How do you cope?” the friend wondered, “and why do you do so many kind things for so many people?” 

“Well,” she said with a gracious smile, “the paralysis never touched my head or my heart.” 

Our head is the door to our hearts. What we see, think, and dwell upon shapes our feelings and is expressed in what we do and the way we act. 

It was the writer of Proverbs who expressed this truth so well. “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance,” he wrote, “for out of it flow the springs of life.” 

Our hearts, the source of our feelings of love and desire, dictates the things that we do and say. How we live and what we find time to do and enjoy all come from “the inside” – our heart. Wisely, Solomon advises us to concentrate on those things that will reflect God’s love to others. We must make sure that what matters most to us leads us in the right direction and demonstrates our concern for others. We can only do this if we focus on putting God first. 

Prayer:  Help us, Heavenly Father, to look straight ahead and keep our eyes focused on You. Keep us from becoming sidetracked by things that would destroy us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Scripture For Today:  Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance for out of it flow the springs of life. Proverbs 4:23

She was over eighty years old and went to work every day. Though old in years, she was young at heart. She made her way through life in a wheelchair and was very successful in several different business ventures. She was also well-known for being involved in doing kind things for others who were going through difficult times. 

“What caused you to end up in a wheelchair?” asked a friend one day. 

“Infantile paralysis,” she replied. 

“My goodness! How do you cope?” the friend wondered, “and why do you do so many kind things for so many people?” 

“Well,” she said with a gracious smile, “the paralysis never touched my head or my heart.” 

Our head is the door to our hearts. What we see, think, and dwell upon shapes our feelings and is expressed in what we do and the way we act. 

It was the writer of Proverbs who expressed this truth so well. “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance,” he wrote, “for out of it flow the springs of life.” 

Our hearts, the source of our feelings of love and desire, dictates the things that we do and say. How we live and what we find time to do and enjoy all come from “the inside” – our heart. Wisely, Solomon advises us to concentrate on those things that will reflect God’s love to others. We must make sure that what matters most to us leads us in the right direction and demonstrates our concern for others. We can only do this if we focus on putting God first. 

Prayer:  Help us, Heavenly Father, to look straight ahead and keep our eyes focused on You. Keep us from becoming sidetracked by things that would destroy us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Scripture For Today:  Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance for out of it flow the springs of life. Proverbs 4:23

One of my dear physician-friends wrote a book entitled “The Body Reveals.” He began his medical career as a general surgeon then studied to become a cardiovascular surgeon. One day while we were talking, he said, “Larry, the most disturbing part of my practice is that I cannot get people to look at their lives - what they are doing to themselves. People think they can do anything they want and then go to a physician for a prescription or some surgery and all of their problems will be corrected. That’s not the way we work. There’s a connection between our bodies and our minds and we are very complex beings, because of the way God made us.”

There’s an intimate and complex connection between our hearts and bodies. Remember – God’s Word reminds us that our hearts contain emotions, values, goals, desires – the “sum total of who we are.” And, Solomon said it so well: “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” This is the only time the word medicine is used in the Old Testament.

One’s “peace of mind” directly affects our ability to maintain a life of wellness. Conversely, a “troubled mind” makes it difficult, if not impossible, to be healthy, and beyond that, to regain our health once we lose it. The most important lesson for us to learn from this verse is that “God is in control.” Whatever is, is a gift from Him to us and He is somewhere “in” that gift. He is at work in our lives shaping us to into His image. We must always remember that He will never leave or forsake us.

Prayer:  Lord, life is difficult. Sickness comes, doubts arise, suffering hurts. Grant us strength, peace and hope. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Proverbs 17:22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

While waiting for my appointment with a surgeon, I decided to take my pulse. It was beating slowly, well within the normal limits. Suddenly the nurse called my name and directed me to a consultation room. After being seated she took my blood pressure - which was well above normal - which is unusual for me. Then she placed two fingers on my wrist to take my pulse. From the waiting room to the consultation room my heart rate increased twenty beats per minute. Fear got the best of my peaceful heart.

There is a direct connection with our emotional well-being and our physical well-being. When what was a fear of the unknown - the possibility of surgery - was about to become known, when faced with that reality, my fear could actually be measured!

The “heart” is much more than a muscle in the Bible. It is the center of our being: the source of our thoughts, our emotions, where decisions are made, problems are solved and choices sorted out. According to Scripture, the heart affects every part of our life - positively or negatively.

Solomon understood that and wisely wrote, “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the body.” It is obvious from what Solomon wrote and what science has confirmed that our emotional - or inner - state greatly impacts body.

Notice the impact of “envy.” It’s an emotion we all deal with. For some, the desire to want something that God has not given us can become so intense that it has the same results as cancer - it eats away life. Beware of envy.

Prayer:  Grant us peace, Lord, to be content with what You give us and accept all things with grateful hearts. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Proverbs 14:30 A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.

“If it works, don’t fix it!”

Most of the time our heart works well and we rarely pause to think about it. Each day our hearts beat about 100,000 times. It sends 2,000 gallons of blood surging through the veins of our bodies, nourishing our organs and tissues. Although it is no bigger than our fist, it keeps blood flowing through 60,000 miles of blood vessels. It is the controlling force of our lives. When it fails, life ends.

The heart, in the Bible, is the center of our emotions, rational and irrational thoughts, our wills and desires. In the Bible, the heart is the “seat” of the entire personality.

And the heart, as described in the Bible, can be our most fundamental problem. What we store, keep or hide in our hearts is what we become and who we really are.

So, as long as we “keep our mouths shut” we can deceive others. But, unfortunately, that does not seem to be possible. In the blink of an eye or a moment in time, we “let our guard down” and our true “self” becomes exposed to the world. We are “found out.”

Solomon wrote that “The tongue of the righteous is choice silver, but the heart of the wicked is of little value.” Jesus said, “How can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”

We hear amazing stories about surgeons who are skilled at “heart transplants.” But a heart transplant does not correct the problem of evil. Only Christ can correct that problem. So, He does not transplant hearts. He transforms hearts. And when that happens, lives change.

Prayer:  Lord, come into and rule our hearts so others will know that Your Son, our Savior, rules our lives. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
 
Scripture for Today:  Proverbs 10:20 The tongue of the righteous is choice silver, but the heart of the wicked is of little value.

It is common to hear a Christian say that the “most important day of my life was the day I accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as my Savior.” It’s also common to hear them say that “it wasn’t long before I began to face the same old problems, was tempted and fell back in to my sinful ways.” How amazing that Solomon has some sound, solid advice for the new Christian as well as Christians of all ages and stages in their walk with the Lord.

“Above all else...” not don’t forget, or remember to, or think about. No! “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.”

If there is any verse that we as Christians must take to heart it is a verse that warns us to “guard our hearts!”

There is so much more to our hearts than the “sentimental” side that we read of in novels and hear of in songs. The heart is where life begins and ends; it is where habits, values, wills and emotions begin. In our hearts is where we find the answers to “who we are” and “what the difference is between ourselves and others” and “what matters most” and “what we will give our lives for.”  It is from our “hearts” that “the real me” springs forth when we least expect it to and causes us to want to hide from embarrassment when we are finally “uncovered.”

What fills our hearts eventually flows into our lives. This “overflow” is who others believe we are. But, if we fill our hearts with His wisdom, others will see Him.

Prayer:  Father, may we relentlessly guard our hearts against anything that would destroy our walk with You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
 
Scripture for Today:  Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

“Pay attention to what I say…listen closely to my words and do not let them out of your sight…and keep them within your heart,” wrote Solomon.
Prayer:  Lord, we can never fool You, and we only fool others briefly. We only fool ourselves. Forgive our folly. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

ARE YOU LISTENING?

A family in Calgary, Alberta, Canada purchased a well trained and very expensive guard dog to protect their home and belongings. It brought them great peace and comfort and reduced their fears of someone invading their home.

One evening as the family gathered together to watch their favorite television program the dog began to bark. “Hush, Sarge,” said the father. But Sarge refused to stop barking and looked anxiously from one family member to another. They refused to be bothered as they watched the show. It was too entertaining.

Finally, the program was over and the father excused himself and went upstairs to go to bed. As he entered his bedroom, he realized that the dog had been trying to get their attention. A thief had carefully and quietly entered their home, opened their safe and stolen their most valuable possessions. The warning of the dog could not get their attention and alert them to danger.

“Today,” (or listen now) warned the Psalmist, “if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts!” Often God tries to “get our attention” to warn us of impending dangers. He does His best to speak to us through His Word or a friend, a verse of Scripture or a sermon. He reaches out to us in love and compassion - anxious to warn us of the attractiveness of sin, the power of temptation and the destruction that awaits us. But, like the family in Canada, we are so often too involved in the things of this world to hear His warning.

Prayer:  Lord, open our ears to hear, our eyes to see, and make our hearts ready to respond to Your voice. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today:  Psalm 95:8 Today, if only you would hear his voice, “Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the wilderness,

Following a horrible accident, one of the victims who was in critical condition was medevaced to the emergency department of a hospital in a large metropolitan city. As the staff was removing his shirt, they noticed the name "Jesus" tattooed across his chest in large red letters. Quite amazed the ER nurse said to the attending physician, "From the way he looks and how he's dressed and his lack of cleanliness, I would assume that the name 'Jesus' on his chest is only skin deep."

If we who are Christ's disciples are to be worthwhile witnesses of God's Message, His name on us must be more than skin deep. It must be heart deep. Not only is His name to be on our lips but penetrate every area of our lives. Not only should it come out of our mouths, but it should be obvious in everything we do. The psalmist said, "But they would flatter Him with their mouths, lying to Him with their tongues, their hearts were not loyal to His covenant."

Perhaps we can understand what the psalmist was talking about when we think of those who sing, "I Love to Tell the Story" but never witness to anyone. Or someone who sings, "Have Thine Own Way Lord" with everyone but me. Or, "Take My Life and Let It Be" - yes, let it be right where it is - please don't bother me. I'm too busy.

Unfortunately, the church has far too many members who say one thing with their mouths and another thing with their lives.

We need to "transplant" our hearts with His heart.

Prayer: Grant us, Father, a heart like Jesus, the mind of Christ and a life that is controlled by the Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 78:36 But then they would flatter him with their mouths, lying to him with their tongues;

Throughout Scripture the "heart" is used as the center of a person’s being. It describes the heart as the personality or inner life or character of a person 257 times. It states that the heart is the center of a person’s emotional state or consciousness 166 times. It presents the heart as the source of intellectual activities 204 times and this includes what we pay attention to or reflect on during our quiet moments or what makes sense to us as we consider the things that cross our paths or what enters our minds. It also speaks of the heart as the source that gives us purpose or direction in life 195 times.

We must never overlook the importance of "the heart."

Certainly the author of Psalm 78 had this in mind. As he reflected on the trials and tragedies of the Israelites, he called attention to the fact that the preceding generations did not put their trust in God and forgot the gracious gifts He gave them. He encouraged them to obey God's laws and not be like their forefathers.

And how were they to do this? What was his "prescription" for them? They were to have "hearts that were loyal to God and spirits that were faithful to Him."

Wisely, this psalmist gave a warning to his listeners. And, thankfully, God passed it on to us in His Word.

Someone once said to me, "Larry, learn from what sin has done in the lives of others. If you do, you will be blessed of God and able to enjoy the best He has to offer."

Surely this is the right moment for each of us to look deep within our "hearts" and be sure we are loyal to God.

Prayer: We are grateful, Father, for the warnings Your Word gives us. May we follow Your guidance each day. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 78:8 They would not be like their ancestors— a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him.

Our hearts are amazing! The average adult heart beats 72 times a minute; 100,000 times a day; 3,600,000 times a year; and 2.5 billion times during a life time.

Although the adult heart only weighs about 11 ounces on average, a healthy heart pumps 2,000 gallons of blood through 60,000 miles of blood vessels each day. If laid out end to end it would circle the globe two times. It pumps blood to almost all of the body’s 75 trillion cells. Only our cornea receives no blood. During an average lifetime, the heart will pump nearly 1.5 billion barrels of blood - enough to fill 200 train tank cars. And every day the heart creates enough energy to drive a truck 20 miles. In a lifetime, it will create enough energy to drive it to the moon and back.

When we consider all that our hearts do for us, its importance cannot be measured. Without its constant beating we could not live. It sustains our lives. Its every beat is a gift from God but we rarely think about it unless we have “heart-problems.” Yet, physical-heart problems are not as serious as spiritual-heart problems. Only God can do miracles with “both” hearts.

The word “heart” occurs six times in Psalm 73. But in verse one it speaks of “those who are pure in heart” - those whose heart is completely committed to God and place Him first in their lives and love Him unconditionally.

Over this God-centered heart is the heart that Jeremiah describes: “a heart that is deceitful and beyond cure.” A heart in this condition needs the Great Physician to cleanse it, restore it, live in it and fill it with His love.

Prayer: Help us, Father, to make room in our hearts for You - to allow Your Spirit to occupy it completely. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 73:1 Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.