emotions & guarding our hearts

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.

Death of a family member of close friend. Wedding. Terminal illness. Loss of job. Divorce. Debt. Traumatic event.

All of those have a thin line that connects them. That line is high emotion and stress. There are things that happen to us, around us and with us that take us in directions that are so uncomfortable. They literally change us.

In my sermon Sunday I quoted some thing I heard that applies or proves this: life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% of how you response to what happens. But the problem is that we often live the total opposite way. We too much think that what happens to us determines our worth or directs our lives completely.

Fact is only what God says is true of us is what matters. We must believe first what God says and then respond to all that happens to and around us from God’s point of view. God sees further. God holds our lives and our future.

When we let our emotions guide us, we will not be grounded in truth. We will be flooded with things that keep us from following God. You have to balance happenings with truth. We have to let God’s truth overshadow it all.

Some things should be researched, discovered and then pushed aside. Other things should be looked at deeply and applied to our lives. It is a big deal to follow God.

Don’t let emotions determine the direction of your heart. See the verse above that says guard your heart! The next verse reminds us that emotions are a part of life and something we share with others.

Romans 12:15 NLT

Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep.

Proverbs 19:21 NLT

You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail.

Let God direct it all. Emotions are part of life, and they really are good. But don’t let emotions wreck you for the long haul. God has an awesome plan.

Jeremiah 33:3 NASB

‘Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’

Catalyst ticket arrived

My ticket to the Catalyst Conference, in Atlanta Oct 8-10, just arrived. I'm excited!

Have you heard of EDITH BURNS?

Edith Burns was a wonderful Christian who lived in San Antonio, Texas . She was the patient of a doctor by the name of Will Phillips. Dr. Phillips was a gentle doctor who saw patients as people. His favorite patient was Edith Burns. One morning he went to his office with a heavy heart and it was because of Edith Burns. When he walked into that waiting room, there sat Edith with her big black Bible in her lap earnestly talking to a young mother sitting beside her. Edith Burns had a habit of introducing herself in this way: "Hello, my name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Then she would explain the meaning of Easter, and many times people would be saved. Dr. Phillips walked into that office and there he saw the head nurse, Beverly. Beverly had first met Edith when she was taking her blood pressure. Edith began by saying,"My name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Beverly said, "Why yes I do." Edith said, "Well, what do you ...

wash feet, sharing hope

John 13:4-5,14 NLT So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him… 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. Jesus set the example we follow. He served. He valued and gave value to others. That is why we choose to serve. For 18 years our church has shared an outreach called back2school, and for 16 of those years we have chosen to give students brand new shoes and socks as well as washing their feet. It is one of the most important parts of this event. Washing feet is a humbling experience where both the give and the receiver learn how to share some moments that might change their lives. Jesus said we should do this. See the verse above. Follow His example, do what He did, and give far more than you will ever know....

Michael Harrison's e-devotion

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