It’s crazy how fast time passes when I’m on my phone. I can spend hours scrolling on Instagram, watching Netflix, or even just talking to a friend. I often don’t even realize how long it’s been until I glance at the clock, which instantly jumpstarts my panic mode. The internet is addicting, dangerous, and it impacts our hearts, for better or for worse. This brought to mind Proverbs 4:23, which is what we are going to be looking at today.
Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” This verse is crucial in our Christian walk, especially as young people.
Breaking it down
The first part of the verse is very emphatic. It says, “Above all else.” The author is making it clear that the following command is not something that should be pushed aside or only thought about at the last second. The command must take priority in our lives.
So what exactly should be taking priority? The command to guard our hearts. The verb guard means to watch or to keep. Guarding your heart could be compared to keeping a garden. When caring for your garden you do not allow any weeds to grow in it. Why not? Because weeds strangle and choke the good plants. They steal the nutrients and take up space. Sin does the same thing in our hearts. It distracts us from what is important and destroys our fellowship with God.
On the flip side, when tending to your garden, you water and give it nutrients. This enables healthy growth and the production of fruitful results. We need to do the same thing with our hearts (metaphorically speaking, of course.) Our hearts not only need to have the “weeds” pulled out but also need to be supplied with the truth. That truth is found solely in God’s word.
The final part of the verse says, “for everything you do flows from it.” You could compare your heart to the roots of a tree. You do not see those roots, but the roots actually determine the things you do see, such as your words and actions. As Luke 6:45 puts it, “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”
Live it out
You most likely know what condition your heart is in. If it’s not in the right place, then it is time to make a change. Fortunately for us, Proverbs 4:24-27 explains how to do this. It says, “Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.”
Here are are some practical applications from those verses: 1) Make sure your words are true, helpful, inspiring, necessary, and kind. 2) Keep your eyes solely on Jesus and His Word. 3) Be careful not to get distracted; run the race with diligence knowing that your prize is eternal. 4) Stay away from situations or people that would encourage you to sin.
Researching and writing this article was majorly convicting. God opened my eyes and allowed me to see that I was failing to guard my heart in many ways. My prayer is that God will use this article to have the same effect on you. Psalms 19:14 is a great verse to meditate on while pondering this topic. It says, “May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.”