Guard Your Heart (Proverbs 4)

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Proverbs 4:23 states, "Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life." This is a verse by which I passionately try to live. I taught it over and over to my kids. I wonder how many lives would have been spared unnecessary heart ache over mistakes made if this verse had been applied. Written by King Solomon, this man knew the importance of guarding the heart. King Solomon, the son of King David, was a part of a family who knew the dangers of not guarding the heart. Their family was the billboard advertisement for pain, despair, and heart break when bad choices were made. For all of us, behavior and choices begin in the mind (or the heart as the center of the soul). Whatever input we choose to dwell on will dictate our attitudes and behavior. Proverbs 23:7 reads, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he". I know in my own life, things always go really bad when I allow my mind to receive those things that are in contradiction to God's Word. It is for this reason that I set boundaries in the music I listen to, the entertainment I view, and the people I befriend. God gives us these warning for our good. We must embrace God's wisdom and adhere to His words. We must incline our hearts to Him and guard our minds and hearts without compromise. I end the post with the lyrics to a Steve Green song: "Guard you heart guard your heart Don't trade it for treasure Don't give it away Guard your heart Guard your heart As a payment for pleasure, it's high price to pay For a soul that remains sincere with conscience clear Guard your heart