Sanctuary Of The Heart

Sanctuary of the Heart

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. Proverbs 4:23

THE WRITER OF HEBREWS repeatedly warned his readers not to turn back from the faith they had once embraced. He was speaking of the Christian faith as a whole, of course, but he made reference to the Israelites in the wilderness, a generation of God-followers who complained about their hardship and missed out on the promises God had given them. The writer consistently contrasted the disappointments and devastations of unbelief with the mighty works and glories of belief, citing numerous Old Testament heroes as examples of how to persist in faith regardless of the adversity that comes against it. His words are a case study in how to saturate our minds in the language of promise.

The proverb tells us to guard our heart above all else because it will determine the course of our lives. That is nowhere truer than in the area of faith. If we entertain all the reasons we shouldn’t believe, we will end up not believing. If we carefully cultivate the seeds of faith that have been planted within us, we will end up with the fruit of faith. It’s actually a choice, not a destiny. Unbelief doesn’t just happen to us. We choose it moment by moment, word by word, day after day. It is up to us to reverse that trend and choose a better path.

Are you taking in thoughts of unbelief? Staring at evidence that is contrary to your faith? Drinking in the arguments of “common sense” that weigh against the unexpected goodness of God? Then you are allowing dirty water into your heart, and it is not a good mix for the rivers of living water God brings up from within you. Your vision of faith will likely become corrupted and confused. If you take in a steady diet of spiritual junk food, your spiritual health—and your pure faith—will be compromised. There’s nothing wrong with being reasonable, as long as reason doesn’t corrupt the words God has given you. But reason together with him (Isaiah 1:18, ESV). Let him inform your faith. Fertilize those seeds and give them room to grow. Guard your heart as a sanctuary of genuine faith, and genuine faith will reap its harvest in your life in due time.

The heart has eyes that the brain knows nothing of.