The Bible tells us that God searches our heart. He examines our secret motives. He examines the “why” behind our actions. If that is true, and it is, then I must invest the time and energy necessary in order to accurately examine my heart, my motives.
First Samuel 16:7 states “the Lord looks at the heart.” The Hebrew concept of the heart embodied four areas of: emotions, will, intellect and desires.
- Emotions = joy, sorrow, fear, hate, love, all kinds of feelings
- Will = deliberately choosing or deciding upon a course of action
- Intellect = to know and understand, to think
- Desires = to wish or long for
All four are wrapped up in your heart.
Jesus states “For whatever is in your heart determines what you say. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.” (Matt. 12:34-35)
The BIG QUESTION: “What are you storing in the vault of your heart?”
It seems to me that the key to the heart is the will. In other words you deliberately choose and decide upon a course of action.
Look at these verses:
(1 Chron. 16:11) “Search for the Lord and his strength; continually seek him” – Searching is act of the will.
(1 Chron. 22:19) “Seek the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.” – Seeking is an act of the will.
(2 Chron. 7:14) “Seek my face and turn from your wicked ways.” – Seeking and turning, an act of the will.
(2 Chron. 12:14) “He was an evil king for he did not seek the Lord.” – To not seek the Lord is an act of the will and leads to evil.
(Ps. 10:4) “The proud are too wicked to seek God.” – Choosing to not seek the Lord leads to pride which is the source of multiple sins.
(Ps. 14:2) “The truly wise seek him.” – Choosing to seek the Lord leads to wisdom.
(Matt. 6:33) “Seek the Kingdom above all else, live righteously and he will give you everything you need.” – Again, it is a choice to seek and to live in a manner that allows God to bless us and work through us.
Once you make a decision of the will, then the passion and emotions will follow.
My Prayer: “Lord as I choose to seek you, let my passion and desire become a laser-beam focus on you. Show me your ways. Show me your heart. Let my choices and actions reflect the decision of my will to seek you. As I seek you, let the manner in which I spend my time, talent and treasure honor you above all else.”
