April 21, 2004
Reading: Proverbs 23:24-28
“My son, give me your
heart” (26)
These are the words of Solomon to his son, but, as we know, he speaks as the voice of wisdom, which is another name for our Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the wisdom of God in human form: He speaks the wisdom of God; He lives God’s wisdom and obeys it.
What is the highest act of wisdom in
which man can participate? To give your heart to Him who is Wisdom incarnate.
With this act, man establishes his eternal welfare by becoming the recipient of
everlasting life which is given to all those who “believe in Him” John
I would like to suggest that throughout your life as a Christian there will be many times when you will give your heart to Him. I am not suggesting that your salvation is temporary and that you need to be born again again, but there will be many times when you will turn to God and yield yourself and your circumstance to Him.
To me, the words of our text, though few in number, provide the secret of our daily walk with Christ. Our heart is that place within each of us where our emotions dwell. It is here decisions are made, temptations are fought and battles won or lost. In other words, your heart is you! The longer I walk with Christ the more I learn to turn to Him in every aspect of my life.
Just because we gave our heart to God and trusted Him for our salvation, does not mean we will never be tempted again. Rather it is the opposite, that which was not called temptation before my salvation, now is! We learn that God has His own set of rules and, in our desire to please Him, we will find ourselves constantly turning to Him for help and advice.
The devil has lost one of his citizens and this never pleases him. He will conjure up ways to make you think your salvation is not real, that you allowed your emotions to get the better of you and that you were never really saved. He will sow seeds of doubt in your heart and try to create confusion in your mind. It is then that you need to turn to God and give Him your heart.
As a Christian, get into the habit of giving to Him all of your temptations, problems, situations and circumstances. You will find He is always there for you. His arms are always outstretched toward you. He will never turn His back and tell you that, this time, you are on your own.
I used to feel that God was not interested in the small things that trouble me and that I was expected to sort things out for myself. God is not like a human parent who may throw their baby into the water to teach him to swim! Of course, as we continue to walk with God, we will grow in strength and learn to resist the devil and the temptations of the world, but until that time His word is ever true, “My son, give Me your heart.”
Never think any situation is too small to discuss with God. When you need Him, He is there. You will never be turned away, His ear is always open to the prayers of His children. Never fear to turn to Him and simply say, “Father, I need your help”.
“LORD, you have heard the desire of the humble; You will prepare their heart; You will cause Your ear to hear” Psalm 10:17.