Heart Matters
Years ago, one of my dearest, closest, long-time friends was given a dreaded diagnosis for a host of health problems. The doctors told him that his life-giving heart, was losing its own; the heart that beat in his chest thousands of times a day, was down to its remaining few. It would be a journey to sustain what remained, and to search for what could be new.
His heart. His very lifeblood to the rest of his body had done all it could to keep going, but could go no more. And as my friend literally reached the precipice of the very last beat of his, another’s was found. A blessing from one, gave life to another.
To some, this may sound like a tragic story, but to me, it isn’t. It’s an amazing story! It’s a jubilant story! It’s a new life…new beginnings…new everything--kind of story! Where death had been stalking, life had conquered! Where emptiness tried to come, joy filled the space.
What was old, was give
What was worn out, was refreshed.
What was hopeless, was promising.
It is a real life story that emphasizes a true life story.
Perhaps you may be there right now.
Perhaps, like so many of us, you wake each day worn out, worn down, and defeated in all that life is throwing at us. You wake with a feeling that your heart is at the very end of just beating one more time; the serenity and peace is as elusive in your heart as it is in the world.
And good Lord, let’s not even discuss love and romance and empty greeting card examples of relationships, right now. It’s hard enough just getting through the day, let alone topping it off with all the rest.
We need heart transplants!
We need newness of the very thing that flows life source through both our bodies and through our faith. We need new hearts. The old ones are wearing down. The old ones have had enough and can’t handle any more. The old ones have scars and tears that get in the way of experiencing life’s joys and happiness. They are clogged with life’s problems and empty of God's answers.
But how? How do we search for what sustains and what renews?
Start with a whimper. A cry. A tear-filled prayer. A shout that rattles the very edges of heaven with a request that is so simple, yet so profound:
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10.
Say those words! Say them everyday! Say them a hundred times a day! Say them so much that heaven takes notice and God Himself says back to you, I will. I will!
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” Ezekiel 37:26
Fight for it, friends. Fight for a new heart and a new spirit--for from the heart, life flows. Don’t accept anything less. Take the gift God wants to give. Let go of the heart of stone, and replace it with a heart of life. Then guard it. Guard it with everything you have. Guard that precious new heart of yours and don’t let the old come back in. Fill it everyday with the very Word that gives life and gives Hope. Renew it and refresh it endlessly. Tend to the heart matters that matter with God.
We can do this friends! We can shed what keeps us down and receive what will lift us up. We can have our own triumphant and jubilant stories. We truly can. We can have a new life…a new beginning…a new everything--kind of story!
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