Day 5: Have a Heart

Read: Colossians 3:23-24

“Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men, knowing that you will receive the reward of an inheritance from the Lord-you serve the Lord Christ.”

Understand:

Everything we do should be symbolic of the life we live in Christ. We are made in His image and should seek to live our lives in ways that reflect His glory.

1. When we do something, how are we to do it?
2. Anything we do should be done for whom?
3. Whom do we serve?

Listen: My students used to laugh at me because this verse was repeated so often. The analogy I used was how much I dislike cleaning toilets. I would explain to them that even though I didn’t like cleaning toilets, I would still do it as if I were cleaning it for the Lord and not just for my family. Serving the Lord isn’t necessarily about the deeds that you are performing as it about the condition of your heart while you are doing it. There is no since complaining about cleaning a toilet because someone has to do it and it should be done well. Why is the condition of our heart so important? Proverbs 4:23 tells us to “Guard [our] heart above all else, for it is the source of life.” Likewise in Proverbs 21:2, we are told that “the Lord weighs the heart.” See, God looks at our heart to see how we are living. We are told to love. We are told to do things as if doing them for the Lord. God blesses us because of the condition of our heart toward His word. His word also tell us that He will give us the desires of our heart when we delight ourselves in Him (Psalm 37:4). The Bible also tells us to guard our hearts and be vigilant with our hearts (Proverbs 4:23). The Lord will search our hearts because they are that important to keep healthy. Why would the health of our hearts be important? Consider these verses from Romans 10:9-10: “. . . if you confess with your mouth ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. With the heart one believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses, resulting in salvation.” Our heart is a link to our salvation through Jesus Christ so it is important to study God’s word and condition our heart in a way that glorifies Him. It is for our benefit to do so.

Pray: Dear Heavenly Father, help us to always remember that keeping our heart healthy is important. Help us to guard it from the dangers of this world that want to lead us away from You. Keep our heart safe and help us to glorify You always by doing things enthusiastically and lovingly. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.