Take heart! Let’s get to the heart of the matter! My heart has been deeply touched by God’s amazing love!
Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” Mark 12:30 (NIV)
Your heart matters to God. God wants you to put your heart into loving Him. Your heart represents your thinking, knowing, and understanding. God desires for you to activate your will to demonstrate your love for Him.
In Paul’s prison prayer for the saints at Ephesus, he prayed specifically for their hearts. He had such a profound love for them and exhibited compassion for them as he prayed for their spiritual perception.
“I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.” Eph 1:18 (NIV)
In the language of the New Testament, the Greek word for heart does not refer to emotions. It refers to your capacity to know and comprehend. Your heart represents your understanding informed by God. God does not deposit His deepest treasures in the shallow waters of your emotions. God entrusts His treasures to your heart.
What are you doing with the heart God has given you? Are you growing in your knowing? Have you given God full access to your heart?
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Pastor Leadership and Pastoral Care