Guard Your Heart
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Matthew 6:21
Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. Proverbs 4:23
Where is your treasure? What is your heart set on? What are the eyes of your mind fixed upon? That is your treasure and that has your heart. Whatever has your heart, has your thoughts the most.
Oswald Chamber writes from “My Utmost for His Highest”: “The true expression of Christian character is not in good-doing, but in God-likeness.”
The Bible tells us that we must guard our hearts (Proverbs 4:23) above all else. Sometimes it’s easy for the world to steal our hearts. But it will always leave us empty. As believers we need to guard our hearts by:
- Becoming more like Jesus
- Serving God with the Holy Spirit’s guidance
- Sharing Jesus with others
FIRST, we are here to become more like Jesus. We need to grow in the knowledge of Him, putting into practice how He has taught us to live.
Rather, you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 3:19
Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:7
How do we do this? By reading God’s Word and spending time with Him, daily. We were created to have a close, personal relationship with God. If we want to know how to become like Jesus, we must get to know Him!
We guard our hearts by staying close to Jesus.
SECOND, serving…allowing God to use our gifts to advance His kingdom, through service to Him.
Service can be many things. And in light of guarding our hearts, it is so easy to get caught up in the serving and forget WHOM we serve, and remember we are serving for God’s glory and not our own.
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)
We guard our hearts by serving Him and keeping our motives pure.
LASTLY, we guard our hearts by sharing Jesus with others.
“We are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” 2 Corinthians 5:20 (NRSV)
We are God’s ambassadors – or official representatives, sharing the gospel. It is up to us to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ and his love.
One easy and effective way is to reach out to those around us by praying for them. If someone tells you they’re hurting or stressed out, ask if you can pray for them.
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise…He is patient…not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9
Jesus died on the cross for all. We are called to be Christ’s disciples — Christ’s ambassadors to a lost and hurting world. We must guard our hearts to be good ambassadors for Jesus.
So guard your heart. The enemy will use all that the world offers to turn our hearts away from our purpose to be like Christ, to serve Him and to share Him with others. When we ground ourselves in God’s Word and daily walk with Him we will be better equipped to stand firm.
A great verse to memorize and focus on in regards to guarding your heart is Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
The beauty of those verses is all of those things listed are attributes of God. So when we think on those things, our hearts and minds are fixed on the very nature of God!
What is your heart focused on today? Are you distracted by the things around you? Where does your treasure lie? Is your heart ready to know Christ, to serve Him and to share Him with the world?
Heather Hanton
Media and Ministries Specialist
The Salvation Army Central Territory
Women’s Ministries Department