by Doc Adkins
“Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practice wicked works with men that work iniquity: and let me not eat of their dainties.” Psalm 141:4
With such a health conscious craze going on, we hear all the talk of being Heart Smart. Our heart is a valuable organ and we have to take care of it. There are so many things that affect whether our heart will function properly.
I wonder how smart we are with our hearts where our Christian living is concerned. We know we should take care of our hearts but do we consciously do it? The Bible gives us some things that we can do to improve the functioning of our heart.
- Believe With Your Heart.
To begin with we need to have a personal relationship with Christ in order to have our heart pumping correctly. We have to see our need of salvation.“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. ” Romans 10:9
- Purpose With Your Heart.
I love the story of Daniel. He was someone who took care of his heart. He decided he wasn’t going to intake the harmful things of the world and he chose to keep his heart pure and working properly.“But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. ” Daniel 1:8
- Serve With Your Heart.
Serving Christ is one of the best exercises for our heart. It’s like doing a cardiovascular workout! Even Joshua was still doing this exercise when he was well up into years. It says in Joshua 23:2, that he told the people,”…I am old and stricken in age” and yet later in the passage he makes a commitment before the people of Israel that he was going to serve God. Even at his age he was exercising by serving God.“And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. ” Joshua 24:15
- Sing With Your Heart.
What a lift to our heart singing can be. When we are joyful and rejoicing in the Lord in our hearts, it’s like giving our hearts a healthy dose of whole grain.“Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in yourheart to the Lord.” Ephesians 5:19
- Trust With Your Heart.
Nothing can help us breathe easier than trusting the Lord. It can make our heart beat in the proper way.“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5
- Love With Your Heart.
There’s something about having love in our hearts that makes that blood pump through our veins a little better. God not only wants us to love Him but love others too.“And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbors as thyself. ” Luke 10:27
If we don’t take care of our heart, it can lead to all kinds of health problems, heart disease and heart failure. There are certain things we need to do in order to maintain a lifestyle in order to take care of our heart. The same is true in the Christian life. Maybe we should make a commitment to do a few things to be Heart Smart.
- How about living a pure life and keeping out the impurities of the world?
- How about decreasing your stress by relying on God more?
- What about increasing your physical activity by serving the Lord more and being active for Him?
- How about more intake of that heart healthy Word of God?
Christ wants us to have strong and vital lives and we cannot have the lives He intended if we don’t take care of our hearts.
So, are you Heart Smart?