Don’t Trust Your Heart – by Abby Kelly
“Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4 (ESV)
There was a magnet on my refrigerator that said, “Only do what your heart tells you.” I don’t know why it never bothered me before, and I feel a little guilty about taking it down. A friend gave it to me several years ago along with a coffee mug and a card enumerating several fun memories. But today, when I looked at that magnet after my quiet time with the Lord, it just seemed so…well, wrong.
Jeremiah 17:9 says that human hearts are desperately wicked. How on earth can I trust what my heart tells me? Following my own intuition and selfishness will undoubtedly leave me lonely, lost and unsatisfied. But the next verse…ah how wonderful: “I the Lord search the heart and test the mind to give every man according to his ways.” At first, it might seem terrifying that God would give us what our deeds deserve. But, that’s not the end of the story! Isaiah 53:6 bears happy news: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on [Jesus] the iniquity of us all.”
So what about my desires, the things my heart tells me to do? When I believe in Jesus as Savior, He begins to change my heart to match His holy desires. “Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.…”.
When we trust Jesus, we can trust our hearts and find true fulfillment.
“Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4 (ESV)
There was a magnet on my refrigerator that said, “Only do what your heart tells you.” I don’t know why it never bothered me before, and I feel a little guilty about taking it down. A friend gave it to me several years ago along with a coffee mug and a card enumerating several fun memories. But today, when I looked at that magnet after my quiet time with the Lord, it just seemed so…well, wrong.
Jeremiah 17:9 says that human hearts are desperately wicked. How on earth can I trust what my heart tells me? Following my own intuition and selfishness will undoubtedly leave me lonely, lost and unsatisfied. But the next verse…ah how wonderful: “I the Lord search the heart and test the mind to give every man according to his ways.” At first, it might seem terrifying that God would give us what our deeds deserve. But, that’s not the end of the story! Isaiah 53:6 bears happy news: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on [Jesus] the iniquity of us all.”
So what about my desires, the things my heart tells me to do? When I believe in Jesus as Savior, He begins to change my heart to match His holy desires. “Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.…”.
When we trust Jesus, we can trust our hearts and find true fulfillment.
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