PROTECTING WHAT MATTERS MOST

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

When something is highly valuable, we protect it. Isn’t it interesting, then, that God makes a point of telling us to protect our hearts? Now, this isn’t talking about our physical, beating hearts, but about the beliefs we hold deep within ourselves and accept as truth.

Why do we need to be so careful about protecting our hearts? Matthew 12:35 tells us whatever is in someone’s heart produces the same in their lives. In other words, our hearts connect us to whatever we believe. That’s why our hearts require constant security detail. Without protection, the Bible warns that our hearts can grow hard, evil, slow, dull and become deeply troubled. (See Hebrews 3:7-8 and 12, Luke 24:25, Matthew 13:15, John 14:1 and 27). They can develop a vulnerability to lies and deceit (Colossians 2:8, Romans 16:18).

For example, if you’re convinced disease is stalking you, the fear of getting sick—even while perfectly healthy—stems from deep-seated beliefs within your heart. Somewhere along the way, your heart began allowing misbeliefs to take root surrounding illness and your future. So, how do you defeat wrong beliefs and kick them out?

Fill your heart with God’s Word and speak it aloud. Proverbs 4:21-22 (MSG) puts it this way: “Keep my message in plain view at all times. Concentrate! Learn it by heart! Those who discover these words live, really live; body and soul, they’re bursting with health.” You’ll be surprised how quickly your heart will begin to latch onto and believe what God says instead. Carefully defend God’s truths in your heart. After all, when you value something highly, you protect it!