TRANSFORMING TUESDAY: It All Starts From Within...What's In Your Heart?

A few months ago I remember blogging on the heart. This must be something that God wants me to deal with since once again, today's reading focuses on the heart. Everything starts with the heart. We need it to survive. Without it, there is no us. We can survive being brain dead (God forbid) as long as we have a working heart. The question then becomes, if the heart is so important, what are you doing to take care of it/keep it clean?

If you have a white carpet in your house you'll do whatever it takes to keep it clean. If you have children they're not allowed to eat in whichever room the carpet is, if you have guests they take their shoes off, if you have a pet then they stay outside. And if the carpet does become dirty, then you clean it. Most people don't like anything that looks dirty, because anything that is associated with dirt is also associated with negativity. We become so consumed with the outside and what people can see, that we forget what really matters...the inside!

Just as change starts from within, positive actions also start from within. This is because what you put in, in any situation, is what you get out. Consequently, you reap what you sow. In today's reading in Mark 7, Jesus focused on what defiles a person. According to him, everything starts from the heart. What are you harboring in your heart? If you harbor hate in your heart, then it will surely show. Whatever is in your heart is what controls your actions. Think about it!! Your mind can have all of the logic in the world, but if your heart wants something different, then you'll follow your heart most of the time. For example if you're in a bad relationship and you keep going back, it's probably because in your heart you may love that person. I used to harbor unforgiveness in my heart. God surely delivered me from that when he humbled me. My unforgiving attitude showed in everything that I did. I would become so defensive, I would cut off friends who did me wrong, I would even stop speaking to people. In the end although most of my actions may have been justified, there was no reason in the world for me not to forgive! When I harbored such ill feelings towards people I cared about, I was the only one truly suffering. I didn't want to suffer any longer. Life is too precious to worry about others, and after all, people get what they put out. In addition, I ask for forgiveness from God on a daily basis. If I can't forgive then I can't expect God to forgive. Now I'm at a place where I freely forgive. I have so much peace in my life and I owe it all to the idea that I surrendered my heart to God. There is no other explanation.  

Your mind could be telling you no, but your heart could be saying no. Your heart becomes so important that it can influence your mind. So once again, what is in your heart, because whatever lies there defines who you are. Is God at the center of your heart? If he is then life becomes so much easier. You must remember that evil people have evil thoughts and evil thoughts develop in the heart. What you harbor in your heart is what you produce. According to the Bible, " 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality,envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” So what separates us from evil people is what lies in our hearts. 

My prayer is that we all get to a place where we can harbor

positive things in our hearts, because positive thinking starts from within. I also pray that before we turn to evil as a resort, that we first turn to God. Not just when we feel like we've tried everything else, but instead as a first and thus last resort. There is more to life than just evil. it is my belief that we all go through issues, however it is no reason for us to harm and defile one another. I say this because there are people who have gone through far worse issues, but they choose not to exhibit evil. Even though we are currently living in a chaotic world, God is always the answer. Change starts from within so if you do harbor anything but love in your heart, just know that God is a forgiving God. It's never too late to repent for your sins until it's actually too late.

Yolanda Adams - Open My Heart

IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO TRANSFORM YOUR TUESDAY!!!

TRANSFORMING TUESDAY: JAMERA