Guard Your Heart

I received this in my E-Couragement for Today from Today's Christian Woman and wanted to pass it along to you.



"Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life." Proverbs 4:23



"Encouragement for Today
The heart is, well, the heart of everything else in our lives. We need to guard it in terms of what we let into it and what we let out of it. Both will determine the course of our lives. Being in touch with your own inner truth, whether feelings, thoughts, needs, or desires, is part of it. Living by values built on the Bible is another part. Guarding against destructive images and other negative input is also involved. Above all else, guard your heart! And—it's one of the most important things we can teach our children.—Diane Eble, author of Abundant Gifts: A Daybook of Grace-Filled Devotions"



It is so important for us to guard our hearts - what goes in affects what comes out. When I was a computer programmer, we knew too well that bad input yielded bad results. We had a saying, "Garbage in, Garbage out!" The same is true of our hearts - especially the impressionable hearts of our children. Be on guard about what you allow not only into your heart, but what you allow into the hearts of your children. Be diligent about the kinds of books, music, movies, TV shows, friends, language, beliefs, and philosophy your children are exposed to. We can not prevent everything from reaching their little ears and eyes, but with diligence and Biblical training, we can help them to learn to choose things that will purify and not pollute their hearts. In other words, it's time to teach our children how to "take out the garbage!"



In His Love, Cathy