One-minute read.
Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.
Proverbs 4:23
Keeping a vigilant heart means guarding what we let into it. Life begins in the heart, the origin of our activities; it determines the course of our life. If we feed our souls with uplifting and encouraging things, our actions will reflect the positive input. But if we feed our hearts negativity, it will produce adverse actions.
Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross, knew how to guard her heart. When a friend asked her about an offense that happened to her years before, Clara responded:
“I distinctly remember forgetting it.”[i]
In other words, Clara guarded her heart by not feeding it with negative emotions. She had a choice of handling the offense, becoming bitter or better. Clara chose better by willingly forgetting the offense, acting as if it had never happened. By doing so, her heart healed as forgiveness mended the injury, erasing it from her heart. If Clara had chosen to meditate on the offense, bitterness would have taken root, and she would have had a different attitude.
Choose to focus on the positive things in life and let go of the adverse events that serve no purpose and only cause bitterness to grow. Produce loving actions by guarding your heart, healing from hurts, and becoming better, not bitter.
Journaling Questions:
What negative things have you fed your heart?
How can you guard your heart from negative emotions?
What can you do to become better instead of bitter?
Prayer:
Thank You for teaching us how to guard our hearts and become better instead of bitter. As negative emotions try to overtake us today, please help us identify them and not let them take root in our hearts. Keep our hearts pure as we pursue You.
IJNIP. Amen
[i] https://ministry127.com/resources/illustration/forgiving-and-forgetting
