No Trespassing! Guard your heart!

Proverbs 4:23:

Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.

When you think of trespassing, what comes to mind? Perhaps you think of uninvited people who enter your home, encroaching on your personal space, crossing lines that have been put into place to identify what is yours. Today we will talk about personal boundaries and just how important they are. The world we live in is fast-paced and busy. Often we find ourselves exhausted both mentally and physically. This can leave our hearts in a vulnerable condition, letting our guard down and getting lured into the schemes of the world. Our thoughts and hearts can stray into dangerous areas that do not profit us in any way. But, I have good news, we don't have to fall subject to the world, with all of its agendas and lies all designed to keep us in a constant state of fear and worry. So let's talk about building boundaries and guarding our hearts. Yes, we have to build those boundaries, but do not worry God has given us the tools, we just need to use them.

Let's start with the fundamentals:

Romans 3:4

........ Let God be true and all men be liars. This is not optional when it comes to safeguarding our hearts. So which one is true? God or man? Oftentimes we are faced with circumstances that work to convince us that God's word must not be true. Physical symptoms, doctor's reports or national headlines. These things can be very persuasive, but we must stand against all of those things knowing that God's word is true and the final authority.   

Next, Romans 12:12 tells us "Do not be conformed to this world........." Wait, what? Now this statement will leave an unknowing world, a world that walks by sight, scratching its head. What is it that separates us, sets us apart. In 1 Peter 2:9 we get a better picture, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of the darkness into his marvelous light." We can also look at 2 Corinthians 5:6-7 "Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight."

Now, you may be asking, how do I walk by faith, putting aside the things I see and feel?

Psalm 119:9-16. "How can I keep my way pure? By living according to your word. "I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Praise be to you, O Lord; teach me your decrees. With my lips, I recount all the laws from your mouth. I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees. I will not neglect your word." Amen and praise the Lord.

Let's put this in a list:

1) Live according to God's word. Knowing God's word is essential. I am concerned that we may just glance over parts of God's word viewing them as irrelevant to today's world. Never considering that those could be the word(s) that we need. So when you are reading God's word and come across something you do not understand or see relevant, ask Him. This is how we build a relationship with the Father.

2)Seek him with all of your heart. We must seek him with a genuine desire. Driven to know him and his ways.

3)Hide his word in your heart. Our words reflect our thoughts and what is in our hearts, and we know that our words are powerful. Meditate on God’s word. After all, were we not created in the image of the one who spoke life into existence?

4) With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth. We must learn to speak his words to the mountains in front of us, not the words that agree with what we see. When we speak his words that contradict the things we see, then we are walking by faith, not by sight. Our words bring us into agreement, it could be with God or the world.

These things bring us to a point of rejoicing in the fact that we have a savior, a father that we can trust to guide us and provide us with all the things we need. As always it is my prayer that these notes help, bless, and encourage.