We have spent a good deal of
time identifying the gods that are warring for our hearts. Now it is time to
start working on guarding our hearts. In Sam's sermon from Sunday he identified
some practical ways that you could guard your heart. Read over them again.
Brainstorm a few ways that you could be proactive and work to set up a good
defense of your heart.
Accountability
James states that when we
confess our sins to one another we will be healed. Deeper accountability comes
when we allow someone to see our hearts. Do you have someone in your life that
is going through this journey with you? Encouraging, challenging, and helping
you?
Prayer
Have you ever noticed how
hard it is to pray when you are not guarding your heart? In Philippians 4:6-7, Paul says to pray about everything with thanksgiving. The result? The peace
of God will guard your hearts and minds. There is an unexplainable power in
prayer. Are you experiencing that power?
Scripture Meditation
It’s not just about what we
guard our hearts from; it’s what we open up our hearts to. The psalmist prayed,
" I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against
you" (Psalm 119:11). Have you kept God's Word in your heart?
Practice Holy Thinking
Paul finishes Philippians
with this thought: “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is
excellent or praiseworthy think about such things” (Philippians 4:8). We are constantly googling
and surfing the net or watching 24 hour news and flipping through hundreds of
other channels and almost none of it is noble, pure, lovely, admirable,
excellent or praiseworthy. Taking time everyday to think about things that are
pure, lovely, excellent and praiseworthy will guard your heart.
