Just follow your heart.”
SAY WHAT?
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? Jeremiah 17:9 ESV
I don’t know about you, but my heart could lead me to do some not so nice things if I allow it.
And the statement, “Just Follow Your Heart.” ?
Let me just say, “Not a good idea!”
If everyone followed their hearts, can you imagine what the future would look like? It would be a very dark place, to say the least.
Our hearts tend to follow wherever the wind blows. If we don’t guide it with the truth of God’s word, we can go down a very dark hole.
Our heart and feelings are intertwined. Many times, our feelings are not truth. For instance, I may feel a person is angry with me. Truth is, they are just having a bad day. How many times have we trusted our heartfelt feelings and been totally wrong about another person? Or made a bad decision because we felt it was the right thing to do?
My past is full of bad decisions because I followed my heart.
Our hearts can lead us into bad relationships, going on a buying spree, making poor choices at school or work – even making a poor decision in church. Say you are asked to lead a small group. Your plate is already full, but they really need someone. What do you do? Your heart is saying go for it and you make a quick decision and say, “Yes” without praying about it or seeking advice. Now, you don’t have time for your family, all of your time is in preparation. All because your heart said, “Yes, I’ll do that!”
Maybe, you went on a date with a really cute guy and it turned out to be a nightmare.
Maybe, you lied about something just to make yourself look good and it backfired. They found out the truth. Now they don’t trust you.
Maybe you tried a drug for the first time. Now you are addicted – all because your heart said, “Try it. What’s it going to hurt?”
Do you see what I’m saying? Following our hearts is not always a good thing. And sometimes we make snap decisions when we do. We don’t think about the consequences or what the outcome might be or who we might hurt in the process.
But our hearts aren’t always wrong. And we can trust God with our hearts!
Often, we say, “God knows your heart.” Now, that’s a true statement!
For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7b ESV
He looks at our heart because that is where our truth lies – good or bad.
Let’s look at some scripture…
- “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flows the spring of life.” Proverbs 4:23ESV
- “As in water, face reflects face, so the heart of a man reflects man.” Proverbs 27:19 ESV Note: reflects true character
- “For where your treasure is, there is your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21
- “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Matthew 12:34 Note: “abundance” here means “excess or overflow” and refers to the core of a person.
We really need to be careful to guard our hearts against the enemy. It is so easy to listen him because it can sound so good. Remember that satan is the father of lies. He speaks only half truths.
Here are a couple of things we can do before making decisions…
First: Pray about it
Second: Go to God’s word. Compare what He says against your heart. Does it line up with His word? Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Galatians 6:22-23 ESV
Third: Seek good counsel from another godly woman, a pastor or counselor.
Stop. Challenge. Choose wisely.
Dear Father,
Thank you for the truth you have given us to learn from. I pray that we learn to guard our hearts and not just follow wherever it leads. Holy Spirit guide us to your truths.
In Jesus name, Amen.
By Deb Cool
Deb Cool is passionate about Jesus and women’s ministry. She currently leads a women’s small group through her church, LCBC Waynesboro.
Deb has been married for 42 years to the love of her life, Rodney. They have awesome sons whom have beautiful wives. And they are blessed with nine amazing grandchildren.
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