I don't know if any of you this week has felt like your attention has been pulled in a million directions. My thoughts have been preoccupied with things that are not pure and I have been renewing myself daily to try and keep the thoughts from taking root in my heart and in my mind. The temptations that I have been facing have been in multiples and they have tried to steal my attention from my Lord and the King of my life. The struggle is real and it has created an uproar in my soul. It has been a trying week facing one giant after another. It has caused me to remember the frailty of my humanity. My attention can too easily be stolen away from the things of God's Kingdom to things that have no eternal value.
There are genuine reasons for my attention to be captured and these are often not evil in and of themselves. However, my focus has lacked discipline. Negative and ungodly thoughts have been given the roam of my mind and some of the thoughts have caused confusion and a fight for guarding my purity and this is my job. I am the protector of my heart and I choose what captures my attention. For a while now, my heart I believed was safely guarded and protected. Through several breaches I have seen how the worlds' ideas, perceptions, and values have distorted my perception. Thankfully, I have noticed it through reading God's word. being diligent in filling my spirit with truth and meditating on the truth I have seen the weak areas where the enemy has tried to attack my defenses. The fight is ongoing. The war does not stop. Don't become complacent for you will see as I have now come to see that your defense system can be challenged and negativity and corruption of your mind will enter if you allow it. We have the role as guardian of our hearts.
It says in God's word in Mark 7:14-23 (NLT)14 Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand. 15 It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.[h]”
17 Then Jesus went into a house to get away from the crowd, and his disciples asked him what he meant by the parable he had just used. 18 “Don’t you understand either?” he asked. “Can’t you see that the food you put into your body cannot defile you? 19 Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.)
20 And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. 21 For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, 22 adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. 23 All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.”
The important thing to remember is that the things we allow in our heart will have the power to defile us. In Proverbs 4:23, it says that we must guard our hearts, for it determines the course of our life. I have seen how vital it is as believers in Christ to keep track of the breaches in our security, look at where we have left our hearts unprotected. We need to read his word and meditate on it for it is the life to our souls and the truth in the midst of much confusion (which comes from the world we live in and its precepts). It will help us navigate this life and avoid the ditches and detours. Our God wants us to live with our hearts and minds captivated by him and his glory. he gives us the tools and wisdom to protect our minds and our hearts but it is our job (one that I will take more seriously) to be diligent and guard them.
Prayer: Lord, recapture my attention and let me see where the possible cracks are in my defense wall. Teach me to guard my heart and abide by your truth and live by your ways. For your ways are higher than my own and they alone will lead to life abundant. Thank you for giving me your word that I can use to lead me through the battles of this life. Help me Lord to set my eyes on your Kingdom, on things eternal. You alone are the king of my heart and I truly want to serve you and live to bring you honor and glory forever, Amen.
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