I hung up the phone and shared the news with my husband. I should have been elated. Instead, I felt dejected. Gary asked softly, “What are you allowing to be written on your heart right now?” I paused and did an internal dipstick. Sure enough, there was the lie. “I’m not adequate, I’m not good enough.” I went for a walk and took the lie to Jesus, along with the negative emotions churning inside. I asked Him to forgive me, to erase the lie and replace it with the truth. Wow, what a relief.
This simple question, “What are you allowing to be written on your heart right now?” has been the starting point for many sweet encounters with Jesus. He has a way of gently exposing the lies in my heart, of showing me the idols I bow to, (the ultimate idol being myself), and doing it in a way where I don’t feel naked or ashamed, but I actually feel loved. What an amazing God! He is tender, firm, loving, unchanging, exposing, gentle, and much more, all at the same time.
He is able to break down the foundations of strongholds, to go deep and expose the lies that have held us captive for years. These strongholds are belief systems that have become comfortable and familiar, but being at ease in them ultimately imprisons us, keeping us from being who God created us to be and doing what He created us to do. Essentially detaining us from the destiny God designed for us.
God is patiently working, preparing us each day for our destiny, but He has also mandated that we must do our part. He tells us in Proverbs 4:23 to guard our hearts, above all else. Why does God tell us to guard our heart above all else? Because it is extremely valuable, so valuable that it determines the course of your life. People only guard things that have value. When you take your trash out, it can sit unguarded. Why? Because it is worthless. Not so your heart. “Above all else” it needs to be protected.
From God’s perspective your heart is central to who you are. God does not see as man sees. We look at the outward appearance, making our judgments and assessments from what we can see in the natural. God says that He judges a man, woman or child based on their heart. (1 Samuel 16:7) Likewise, He doesn’t judge us by our words either. He says that we can use the religious jargon, but our hearts can be far from Him. (Matthew 15:8) Just like your physical heart, your spiritual heart is vital to your existence.
Another reason your heart is so valuable is because it has treasures written upon it. God has written things on your heart by His Spirit. As a believer, 2 Corinthians 3:2,3 says that you are a letter, that can be read by everyone. Ink isn’t used. This precious letter has been written by the Spirit of the Living God on the tablet of your heart. You are a letter to the world!
Wonderful things have been written on our hearts by the Holy Spirit, such as His unfailing love for each of us as His adopted children and that He has good plans for our lives. He also writes specific things: deep things that only He understands and reveals to us as we seek to know Him and pursue the destiny that He has prepared for us through the good times and the trials. He created you with dreams and longings, desires and hopes unique to you. A form letter, you’re not. You’re not junk mail either. You’re a distinctive letter to the world revealing a facet of Him that no other person can reveal.
This beautiful letter, crafted by the Holy Spirit, can become smudged, or even obliterated by many things. Bitterness, pride, anger, judgement and lies are a few things that the enemy uses to try and get us to carelessly scribble over the true words of Christ. He wants to steal your heart and destroy the potential that resides in you or at least alter your course so that you dead end and never have the joy of fulfilling your purpose.
It is critical that you be attentive to the condition of your heart. So much rests on how you are caring for it. I am grateful for this simple question that has helped me to consider how I am guarding my heart. What are you allowing to be written on your heart?
We have more to share with you…, we’re in process and will write more soon.
Blessings, Gary and Cathy