Your Life Depends On It

Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23 NKJV

Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts. Proverbs 4:23 MSG

So above all, guard the affections of your heart, for they affect all that you are. Pay attention to the welfare of your innermost being, for from there flows the wellspring of life. Proverbs 4:23 TPT

Yesterday, in our Sunday Service Pastor Tim mentioned the verse above at the beginning of the message. Stop for a moment and consider every choice you make, everything you say and everything you think is produced from your heart. In short Proverbs 4:23 is telling us how important it is to have a healed heart. It is literally the first thing Jesus turns His attention to in our lives. Let’s start by looking at these key words in each version of the Bible, it uses three different words. Diligence, vigilant, and guard.

Diligence means persistent, steadfast, and careful

These words mean you never give up paying attention to what is happening in your heart. Never allow yourself to be numb to how your heart is feeling in every moment. These are the opportunities we invite the Holy Spirit to give us understanding about why we feel the way we feel. When was the last time you asked the Holy Spirit about your heart? Diligence looks like building a habit of asking the Holy Spirit for wisdom.

Vigilant means watchful, attentive, circumspect in order to avoid danger. Vigilant requires action. Actively pay attention to what is affecting you and what is vying for your attention.

Guard means to be careful. Take seriously the influences you allow to penetrate your heart. Everything you do in your life is at stake. So, guard your heart like your life depends on it because it does.

We encourage you to spend some time today listening to this song and allow the Holy Spirit to restore tenderness to areas of your heart.