Question 1

What kind of heart does God desire for me?

Accepted Answer

2 Kings 23:25Never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses.God desires a devoted, obedient heart.1 Chronicles 29:17“I know, my God, that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there. You know I have done all this with good motives, and I have watched your people offer their gifts willingly and joyously.”God desires a heart of integrity.Psalm 51:6, 10, 17You [God] desire honesty from the womb, teaching me wisdom even there. . . . Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. . . . The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.God desires an honest, clean, repentant heart.Psalm 86:11Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you.Matthew 5:8“God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God.”God desires a pure heart.1 Samuel 16:7The Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”God desires a heart with the right motives.

Question 2

How can my heart become the heart God wants?

Accepted Answer

2 Chronicles 12:7When the Lord saw their change of heart, he gave this message to Shemaiah: “Since the people have humbled themselves, I will not completely destroy them and will soon give them some relief. I will not use Shishak to pour out my anger on Jerusalem.”To have the kind of heart God wants, we must develop an attitude of humility. Only when we are humble can we begin to change.Ezekiel 18:31“Put all your rebellion behind you, and find yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.”To have the kind of heart God wants, we must get rid of sinful habits or lifestyles. When we practice obeying God’s Word, we will see our hearts change for the better.Ezekiel 36:26“And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.”God has the power to change our hearts. So to have the kind of heart God wants, we should turn to him and ask him to do his transformative work in us.Hebrews 9:14Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.To have the kind of heart God wants, we must trust fully in Christ. When we believe that Jesus died for our sins and commit ourselves fully to him, he forgives us and purifies our hearts.Psalm 51:10Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.Luke 8:4-8, 11-15One day Jesus told a story to a large crowd that had gathered from many towns to hear him: “A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it. Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture. Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants. Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted! . . . This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God’s word. The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation. The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.”Ephesians 4:23-24Let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.A clean heart produces clean thoughts and actions. So to have the kind of heart God wants, we must not allow bad desires in so they can take root and grow into bad thoughts and actions. Bad desires and thoughts are evidence that bad seeds have been planted, and we need to do some weeding. Complete renewal is not yet accomplished. No one will be entirely pure in this life, but one of the worthiest goals to pursue is purity of mind and heart. We should consider what we might look like a year from now—inside and outside—if we prioritized that goal.

Question 3

How do I guard and protect my heart?

Accepted Answer

2 Chronicles 19:9These were his instructions to them: “You must always act in the fear of the Lord, with faithfulness and an undivided heart.”Proverbs 4:23Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.Proverbs 23:19My child, listen and be wise: Keep your heart on the right course.Ephesians 3:17Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.1 John 5:21Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.To guard and protect our hearts, we should keep God at the center of our lives to prevent anything else from controlling us. Hearts filled with love for God leave little room for Satan’s temptations to intrude.Proverbs 4:23Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.Proverbs 23:19My child, listen and be wise: Keep your heart on the right course.1 John 5:21Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.A guardrail on a dangerous curve is not there to inhibit our freedom but to save our lives. That guardrail is a sign of security and safety, not an obstacle. In the same way, we need “guardrails” as we travel through life—not to inhibit our freedom but to keep our lives from going out of control. Our hearts determine where we go because they most affect our passions and emotions. If we don’t guard our hearts with God’s Word and stay focused on the road ahead where God wants us to go, we may have a terrible accident when temptation distracts us.

Question 4

How do I get my heart to long for God?

Accepted Answer

Deuteronomy 10:12-13“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? He requires only that you fear the Lord your God, and live in a way that pleases him, and love him and serve him with all your heart and soul. And you must always obey the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good.”Mark 12:29-30Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘. . . you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’”Luke 12:34“Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”When God is the center of our lives, our relationship with him will be our highest priority. We will long to spend time in prayer and reading the Bible, our thoughts will often turn to God, we will want to please him, and we will want to obey him. The more we love God, the more our hearts will long to be closer to his.

Question 5

How can I recover from a broken heart?

Accepted Answer

Ecclesiastes 3:4A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance.Life ca be difficult, and we certainly will experience sorrows ad heartache along the way. We need to realize that this is life in a fallen world and take time to mourn our losses. God will comfort and heal us in time.John 11:33-35When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled.“Where have you put him?” he asked them. They told him, “Lord, come and see.” Then Jesus wept.We see from Jesus’ response that expressing emotions, even through tears, is healthy and natural.Psalm 61:2From the ends of the earth, I cry to you for help when my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the towering rock of safety,Pouring out our feelings, thoughts, and desires in prayer to God can help mend our broken hearts.John 16:33“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”2 Corinthians 6:10Our hearts ache, but we always have joy. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing, and yet we have everything.The presence of God can bring peace, comfort, and even joy to help mend our broken hearts. How can I trust God enough to give him my whole heart?Numbers 23:19“God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?”Psalm 89:34-35No, I will not break my covenant; I will not take back a single word I said. I have sworn an oath to David, and in my holiness I cannot lie.Malachi 3:6“I am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed.”2 Thessalonians 3:3The Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.James 1:17-18Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.We trust those who are dependable and tell the truth. God didn’t just create truth—he is the source of truth and he cannot lie. Because God cannot lie, everything he says in Scripture is true. So we should keep reading the Bible to find his promises to us. There we will discover how much he loves us and wants a close relationship with us. When we trust him with our whole heart, he will make himself known to us in amazing and powerful ways, and we will experience a whole new level of relationship with him.

Question 6

What happens when the love of Jesus fills my heart?

Accepted Answer

Ephesians 3:19May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.Hearts filled with the love of Jesus leave little room for anything bad to enter. The Bible promises that his love is so great we can never fully understand it. But if we try, his love keeps growing inside us, pushing out any thoughts or sins that shouldn’t be there. When we enter our eternal home, the love of God will completely fill our hearts, and nothing bad will ever enter again.