Wisdom for your heart

Above all else, guard your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.

Keep your mouth free of perversity;
keep corrupt talk far from your lips.

Let your eyes look straight ahead;

fix your gaze directly before you.

Give careful thought to the paths for your feet
and be steadfast in all your ways.

Proverbs 4:23-26

 

The Bible tells us, “Above everything else guard your heart.”

 

This admonition goes beyond a heart-healthy diet. Our heart requires spiritual care. We must guard our hearts because Jesus said, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. (Matthew 15:19)”

 

We must avoid the sinful contaminants that wear our heart down. Proverbs 6:24 warns, “Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips.”

 

Jesus said, “The mouth speaks what the heart is full of. (Matthew 12:34)”

 

Check your heart health by listening to what comes out of your mouth. “Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and saltwater flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.
(James 3:10-12)”

 

We are also warned about our eyes. “Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. (Proverbs 6:25)”

 

What your eyes focus on will enter your heart. Jesus was serious about this. He said, “If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. (Matthew 5:29)”

 

Jesus said, additionally, “Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness. (Luke 11:34)”

 

Therefore, we must keep our eyes on Jesus the beginning and the end of our faith. (Hebrews 12:2)

 

Keep out of situations that can compromise your heart. “Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. (Proverbs 6:26)”