Bible League: Living His Word Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.— Proverbs 4:23 NLT I've often heard people greet me and ask, "How's life treating you today?" Greeting someone this way may sound cool, but it assumes that you are a victim of "life." But God's Word says our own heart determines the course of our lives. Our own heart got us to the place we are in today. I recently purchased some mangos from the supermarket. They looked beautiful and juicy and very tempting. But when I cut them open at home, much of the fruit was rotten inside. I was so disappointed. Prior to knowing God, I too was like this mango. I was kind, compassionate, and loving on the outside for the world to see, but my heart was rotten. That rottenness was determining the course of my life, leading me toward a life of failure, frustration, anger, pride, jealousy, and depression. As imperfect and sinful humans, our hearts are influenced by the experiences derived from our five physical senses. Our senses determine our thoughts, and our thoughts influence our hearts. Imagine your heart as a garden. It's a vibrant and thriving space where the seeds of your thoughts, emotions, and desires are planted. Just like a gardener tends to her garden, God calls us to be diligent guardians of our hearts. Why? Because everything we do, every action and reaction, flows from the condition of our hearts. Picture yourself driving in heavy traffic, running late for an important meeting. Someone cuts you off, and frustration builds up within you. Your initial reaction might be to honk the horn or mutter some choice words under your breath. In this moment, your heart is exposed, and the condition of your heart influences your response. Guarding your heart means choosing a different response. Instead of letting frustration take root, you could take a deep breath, say a quick prayer, and extend grace to the driver who cut you off. In doing so, you're tending to the garden of your heart, ensuring that love, patience, and understanding flourish, even in challenging situations. The verse for today is a call to make guarding our hearts a priority in our daily lives. So, practically, how do we guard our hearts? 1. Stay rooted in God's Word. Just as a plant in a garden needs water and nourishment to grow, our heart needs the Word of God to thrive. Regularly spending time in Scripture allows it to shape our thoughts which in turn influence our hearts. Not doing so will allow worldly experiences to shape our thoughts and hearts. 2. Choose your influences. Be mindful of what you watch on TV and social media. Be mindful of the people you allow into your life. Be mindful of the words you speak and the songs you listen to. 3. Pray continuously. Develop a habit of talking to God throughout the day. It is like regularly watering your heart's garden, ensuring it remains fertile and vibrant. 4. Guard your thoughts. Be intentional about the thoughts you entertain. Replace negative and condemning thoughts with positive affirmations rooted in God's promises. Guarding your heart is a daily, ongoing process. It's about making conscious choices that align with God's principles in the midst of life's ups and downs. By doing so, you'll find that the fruits of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—flourish in your heart and overflow into every aspect of your life. As you go about your day, take a moment to reflect on Proverbs 4:23. How can you actively guard your heart in various situations today, ensuring that the love and wisdom of God guide your thoughts and actions? By Santosh Chandran, Bible League International staff, New Zealand Bible in a Year Old Testament Reading2 Kings 20, 21, 22 2 Kings 20 -- Hezekiah's Life Lengthened, Shows Treasures to Babylon NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB 2 Kings 21 -- Manasseh's and Amon's Wicked Reigns NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB 2 Kings 22 -- Josiah's Good Reign; Repair of the Temple; Finding the Lost Book of the Law NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading John 6:45-71 John 7 -- Jesus Teaches at the Feast of Tabernacles; Diverse Opinions of Him among the People NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God.Insight Daniel stood alone. Although he knew about the law against praying to anyone except the king, he continued to pray three times a day as he always had. Daniel had a disciplined prayer life. Challenge Our prayers are usually interrupted not by threats, but simply by the pressure of our schedules. Don't let threats or pressures cut into your prayer time. Pray regularly, no matter what, for prayer is your lifeline to God. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Hebrews 12:11 Afterward.How happy are tried Christians, afterwards. No calm more deep than that which succeeds a storm. Who has not rejoiced in clear shinings after rain? Victorious banquets are for well-exercised soldiers. After killing the lion we eat the honey; after climbing the Hill Difficulty, we sit down in the arbour to rest; after traversing the Valley of Humiliation, after fighting with Apollyon, the shining one appears, with the healing branch from the tree of life. Our sorrows, like the passing keels of the vessels upon the sea, leave a silver line of holy light behind them "afterwards." It is peace, sweet, deep peace, which follows the horrible turmoil which once reigned in our tormented, guilty souls. See, then, the happy estate of a Christian! He has his best things last, and he therefore in this world receives his worst things first. But even his worst things are "afterward" good things, harsh ploughings yielding joyful harvests. Even now he grows rich by his losses, he rises by his falls, he lives by dying, and becomes full by being emptied; if, then, his grievous afflictions yield him so much peaceable fruit in this life, what shall be the full vintage of joy "afterwards" in heaven? If his dark nights are as bright as the world's days, what shall his days be? If even his starlight is more splendid than the sun, what must his sunlight be? If he can sing in a dungeon, how sweetly will he sing in heaven! If he can praise the Lord in the fires, how will he extol him before the eternal throne! If evil be good to him now, what will the overflowing goodness of God be to him then? Oh, blessed "afterward!" Who would not be a Christian? Who would not bear the present cross for the crown which cometh afterwards? But herein is work for patience, for the rest is not for today, nor the triumph for the present, but "afterward." Wait, O soul, and let patience have her perfect work. Daily Light on the Daily Path Galatians 5:26 Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.Judges 8:24,25,27 Yet Gideon said to them, "I would request of you, that each of you give me an earring from his spoil." (For they had gold earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.) • They said, "We will surely give them." So they spread out a garment, and every one of them threw an earring there from his spoil. • Gideon made it into an ephod, and placed it in his city, Ophrah, and all Israel played the harlot with it there, so that it became a snare to Gideon and his household. Jeremiah 45:5 But you, are you seeking great things for yourself? Do not seek them; for behold, I am going to bring disaster on all flesh,' declares the LORD, 'but I will give your life to you as booty in all the places where you may go.'" 2 Corinthians 12:7 Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me-- to keep me from exalting myself! Philippians 2:3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; 1 Corinthians 13:4,5 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, • does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, Matthew 11:29 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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