“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it. I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” Jeremiah 17:9-10
Have you ever had a thought pop into your mind that surprised you? You wonder where did that come from? It may be something that you experienced or heard many years ago, but suddenly it comes back when you least expected it. It may be a feeling of resentment against someone, or a memory of something that hurt you.
When the Bible speaks about the heart, it is not referring to that physical organ that circulates the blood within our bodies and keeps us alive. It refers to our innermost being, the very centre of our emotions.
In Proverbs 4:23, it says, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” In other words, all our actions, reactions, our relationships with God, and with other people all spring from our hearts. The word “diligence” used in this scripture, suggests something that requires effort on our part. It speaks of a consistent, steadfast dedication to the Lord.
Jeremiah likened the man who trusted God to a tree.
Jer 17:7-8 “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit”
Jesus used the same illustrations in Luke 6.43-45
“For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.”
How important it is for us to keep our physical hearts healthy, by the way we live and the foods we eat. But it is even more important that we nurture and feed our spiritual hearts so that they remain pure and holy before the Lord. Only God knows what is really in our hearts and so we must be diligent to read His Word and spend time with Him in prayer, letting Him search our hearts and reveal areas that need attention.
Prayer: “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24
Devotion by Anne Johnston
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