“Keep your heart with all vigilance,
for from it flow the springs of life.” Proverbs 4:23 (ESV)
“So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” John 16:22 (ESV)
Our writing prompt for this month reminds me, “The Bible speaks of the heart as the core of one’s being, composed of our mind, emotion, and will. How do you keep or guard your heart? What is it saying to you these days?”
I pondered this question for a few days before I put words on the page. Once I began to write, I found my thoughts kept going in a certain way. The words that came to life in my mind are thoughts perhaps readers will also ponder.
You might have noticed the world is loud these days. Everyone has an opinion. More than this, those who have an opinion seem to have the need for everyone else to hear their opinion. So much noise, so much talking over each other…and they all think they speak the truth.
What Does My Heart Say?
Did I pray well?
In giving thought to this post for February, a few sobering questions came to mind. I would like to share these questions with you.
Dear friends, has your soul ever wept for the world around you? Has the weight of sorrow crushed your heart? There might be times where one’s sorrowful heart has cried out to heaven. Our cry is so deep that it seems God has turned His beautiful face away. Oh my, how we must guard our hearts from such despair.
As I observe the various upheavals going on today, I wonder if anyone knows the way forward. We need prayer. This writer and all who read this message all need prayer to guard our hearts.
We must pray for each other.
We must pray for the world.
In all the noise, confusion, and unguarded heart moments so pervasive today, my tendency is to retreat, to be quiet, to not state my opinion. Believe me, I have my faults, but I also must guard my heart as God’s Word dictates.
As a writer who is also a Christian living in this time of everyone does right in his or her own eyes, I must pause. Pause and listen to what my heart asks of me…did I pray well for the words I send into the world? This is a question I would like to hear the Lord answer some day. Did the tears and hope of my humble words make a difference to anyone amid the noise?
What Does My Heart Say?
My heart says to send words into the world as agents of peace. This simple statement begs a question from me as one called to write.
Did I serve well?
Dear friends, as writers who are Christians, we can offer peace to the world. A peace that passes all understanding, even our own. We must take this in a serious manner. This is how we can serve our call from the Lord to write well. We offer words of peace, love, and harmony, to soften the hearts of people amid calamitous thundering voices.
A Concluding Word
“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!” Psalm 139:23 (ESV)
This is what my heart says: Did I pray well? Did I serve well?
Alan lives in a small village called Deroche, British Columbia, with his wife, Terry, and their poodle, Charlie. He enjoys walking on the dike near his home with trees all around and where he finds inspiration to write. He occasionally writes articles for FellowScript Magazine and is a regular contributor to the InScribe Christian Writers’ Fellowship blog. Alan is the new BC/Northern Regional Rep for InScribe. His website is https://scarredjoy.ca
Oh Alan, when you ask the questions, "Has your soul ever wept for the world around you? Has the weight of sorrow crushed your heart?", it seems to be what my heart is doing these days. There is so much out there that is crushing. My own life is quiet and pleasant but I do feel the heartbreak and sorrows of so many out there.
ReplyDeleteI've been pressing into, as never before, to cast ALL my cares upon Him. Every one. Whisper my prayers for those I cannot help. And leave them with Him. And then turn my thoughts towards those I CAN do something for. Otherwise, to quote someone I recently read, "I get into a frozen, paralyzed state where I can't do anything, but nor can I take any interest in my own projects, which are all dwarfed by what I have just witnessed."
We continue to send out our words of light and hope as, how you put it, "agents of peace."
Thank you, Alan, your words are agents of peace. Be blessed in all you do and write.
Brenda, I am humbled by your words. I resonate with your heart as you feel for the world. We cannot soothe the pain of the whole world, but, Lord willing, we can be agents of peace to those around us. Thank you for your blessing, my friend.
DeleteDear Alan, these are words that are balm to my soul today. My heart has been so heavy for the world these days, both globally and more personally. Your gentle loving words of encouragement move me to "cast all my cares on Him" in order to guard my heart from despair.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Dear Lorrie, may God keep you from despair as you live in peace in our scarred world. The world around us, our family, friends, colleagues, cannot give us the peace that passes all understanding, but we can live in peace with them. Blessings to you, my friend, and please continue to send words op peace into the hearts of others.
DeleteAlan, these words about the heart and from the heart have done my heart good. I appreciate the questions you have asked in order to examine ourselves and our motives and our alignment with God. And of course you know I love the ending scripture. Many thanks, my friend.
ReplyDeleteHi Sharon, to say my words touched your heart humbles my heart. A response like yours reminds me of how we can encourage each other as writers. Blessings to you and your family. :)
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