January 28 – From the Heart to the Life

“Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.” – Proverbs 4:23 (NASB)

In the time of King Solomon, the heart was seen as the center of intellectual activity. It was, regarded as the seat of the consciousness and the will.  The brain, a vital organ of the body is not mentioned in the Old Testament because it was not understood to have intellectual significance. The heart of a person was thought of as we in our days think of our brain.  Even today though we focus a great deal of what happens in our brain and we talk about how it affects our hearts.  We are instructed to watch over our hearts with all diligence and for good reason. Being vigilant, on guard, ready to fend off the thoughts and ideas that would corrupt our heart, influence our commitment, and drag us off our path.  How often do we make a decision based on how we feel about the circumstances?  This is why we must be diligent, not only to protect our hearts from evil but recognizing that our life is fed from what flows out of our hearts.  Let's be vigilant today to also watch over what comes out of our hearts that it might be righteous. 

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October 13 – Pure Not Putrid

“Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life. Put away from you a deceitful mouth And put devious speech far from you.”  - Proverbs 4:23-24  (NASB)

We were encouraged yesterday to keep the words of wisdom we learn in our heart/mind. Our verses today take the encouragement once step further.  Being diligent to watch over our heart/mind is vital. Especially since that is where we are keeping God's Words to us.  Our heart/mind is the source of our life – how we think, what we say, and what we take up to do.  The writer says that the springs of life flow out of our heart/mind.  This is our promise.  Our thoughts form our attitudes and our attitudes direct our actions.  So we listen to the Word of God when we are reading it, studying it, or listening to its being taught.  What follows is the instruction to be done or finished with devious speech. It is our heart/mind that receives the pressure to stray.  It comes from the evil in the world tempting us to behave according to our own interests. What kind of springs of life do we want?  We want a heart with pure springs and not putrid ones, don't we?  

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