What’s in your heart? Well get it out! In His Word 7-8-2024
Often I get asked why
God doesn’t answer all of our prayers. After some years of study and reading in
the Bible I have come up with the answer in a question. “Where is your heart?”
or you could ask yourself “What’s going on in my heart?” The Word of God tells
us that what we hold dearest is what is in our heart, so take a moment and
examine yourself, your motives and see if they are pure. Take a moment and look
deep inside, your heart and your mind and ask God to show you if there is
anything in there that should be removed or forgiven. Psalm 139 has a lot about searching and
seeking God to help us get right with Him The 23rd and 24th
are the most commonly quoted ones and really fit for today’s topic.
Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my
anxieties; and see if there is any
wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24
Once He has shown us what to do we need to pray and ask
forgiveness, and or for cleansing from any unclean thoughts in our minds, or in
our lives. Sometimes that means distancing ourselves from people, places or
things. You know, nouns are always the things that need to be removed or replaced.
You could think of it like this; if you get a flat tire you
do not go driving on it or it will ruin
your rim, yoru rim will in turn ruin your drive shaft, or other such
things under the car. Eventually you will be stranded waiting for a tow. The
good news is that Jesus is our Tow Truck driver, and He will take us to the repair
place, in His Word. Perhaps we need to
pray like David prayed in Psalm 51:10 asking God to create in us a clean heart…
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast
spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and
uphold me by Your generous Spirit. Psalm 51:10-12
God’s Heart- is forgiving, full of grace, loving, giving,
and yet we can cause it to weep. When we do not have faith or trust Him, or when
we disobey His Word we grieve the Holy Spirit.
Pray the prayer with David, read the full Chapter in Psalms
to get the full picture, but then take a moment and pray. Then thank Him, in
fact thank Him first as you begin to pray! When we begin to pray with thanks it
helps us to really let go of the desire to fix things ourselves, and helps us
to accept that God is the one who is really going to help us out of the
situation we got ourselves in.
The Lord God will see our praise and worship as a sweet
sound, and soothing aroma! Then just as with Israel God will accept our desire
for repentance and forgiveness and heal us. Just as He said in His Word, if His
people humble themselves and pray then He will heal their land. We must humble
ourselves in the name of the Lord Jesus. Admit our wrongs and be cleansed from sin.
And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in
His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the
imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy
every living thing as I have done. Genesis 8:21
“Do not lay up for
yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves
break in and steal; but lay up for
yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where
thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart
will be also. Matthew 6:19-21
Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:
‘These people [a]draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their
lips, but their heart is far from Me and in vain they worship Me, teaching as
doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”Matthew 15:7-9
Don’t think you are sinless, none of us is! We live in a
sinful world, and we need to be honest with ourselves and God. He knows the
truth, we do too. So put the right treasures in your heart today. Worship the
Lord, Praise Him for the goodness that He is, and unclutter that junk you have been
hoarding that caused you to be messed up instead of full of joy!
Accept that you walked the wrong way and ask forgiveness of
the Lord for messing up and then pray. When you have a clean heart the Lord
will take the time to hear your prayers and you will accept His answers. Trust
the Lord with all of your heart, He will show you what to do and where to go
when you do!
I will praise You with my whole heart; before the gods I
will sing praises to You. I will worship toward Your holy temple and praise
Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth; for You have magnified Your
word above all Your name. In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and
made me bold with strength in my soul. Psalm 138:1-3
Today’s readings were from KJV but you can check them out in
your own version by clicking the links and changing the versions. I pray that
you will find that clean heart prayer time and worship the Lord with your whole
heart today! In His Word.