Here Are My Thoughts

READ: Proverbs 4

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flows the springs of life.” (Proverbs 4:23)

The worst part about coaching high school football is all of the certification requirements you have to fulfill before the season starts. I just finished my last one (hallelujah!) this morning, which included a video and quiz on sudden cardiac arrest. The information presented in the course makes something we all know very clear-the heart is vital to life. If the heart stops pumping, something is terribly wrong. Without the heart functioning the way it is supposed to, life isn’t really possible.

And I know that’s not what Solomon is talking about when he warns us to guard our hearts vigilantly, because the springs of life flow from it. But what is true physically is also true spiritually. My heart is my life. If my heart is not right-if it is cold, distant from God, calloused, or desiring the wrong things-then my life will not be right. And Solomon’s pleas with us to accept and seek wisdom because he wants our lives to be right. He wants what is best for us.

Which is why he tells us to keep our hearts with all vigilance. See, our hearts can go wayward. Our hearts are easily deceived and distracted. We can get caught up, so quickly, in what is destructive to our hearts-that which is opposite of God’s will for us. And so Solomon tells us to be on guard, to keep a close look at the state of our hearts. And he even gives us some tips on how to do just that. In the subsequent verses, he urges his readers to keep looking directly ahead, not to be distracted by what is around us. He calls us to ponder the path of our feet, so that we know that our ways are sure and true and right. And lastly, he commands us to turn away from evil-that which wrecks our hearts. He gives us this teaching so we will learn to protect our hearts-because our hearts are vital.

So where is your heart today? If you don’t know how to answer that, think honestly about the words you say (because out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks), the thoughts that come to your head, the things that you do in secret, and how quickly you’re irritated, dismissive, or angry with those around you. Those prompts will give you a decent idea of where your heart is. And then, you must make the commitment to guard it. To keep your heart with all vigilance, because the springs of life flow from it.

-Brett