“For as you think in your heart, so you are”

~Proverbs 23:7

That is one powerfully convicting verse….do you agree?

It means that what you believe to be true in your heart will outflow into how you behave and therefore lead to who you become.

One could flip it and say that how you behave reflects what you believe to be true in your heart.

Yikes.

How many times do we say we believe in something but our actions speak so much louder than our words?

Let’s take priorities as an example first (FYI -I’m gonna start easy and work up to the painful, uncomfortable examples)~

We can say we value home cooked meals and dinner with our family but how often do we really cook a meal and sit down together to eat?

I’ll be honest.

I made dinner last night for my son’s.

Yay me, right?

Did we sit and eat it together?

Nope.

One son ate it while playing on his phone in the living room before I picked his brother up from an after school activity.

Did I eat, then, with the other son when we got home?

Nope.

I ate alone while son #1 was in the bathroom.

He, after me, also ate alone.

Is any of that a big deal?

In the grand scheme of things, no.

But, if I say I value “dinner time” as a family priority…why didn’t we just eat together?

My excuse is that their dad is gone for business so our routine is off…but the reality is that it simply was not my priority last night to eat together.

I cooked✓

We ate✓✓

We moved on.

My point is…. my actions were not consistent with what I say I believe in my heart to be a value.

Goodness. That’s humbling.

NEXT.

I’ll go easy on myself with this one…

I’m a big believer in saying “good night”, “I love you”, and giving hugs and kisses. Especially at bedtime.

Needless to say, I have boys….they do not always enjoy my Public Displays of Affection- whether we are home alone or not.

Get over it guys cuz it’s gonna happen.

I believe in my heart that telling people you love them and showing them you love them is extremely important….so…I tell and show those I love all the time.

Last night, I was tucked in my bed all cozy when my baby (he’s 14, stands taller than me, and can bench press more than he weighs) went to bed. I got up…went to his door and knocked (he is 14- I’m not going in there without permission 😉). When he opened the door, I hugged and kissed him goodnight.

My actions were consistent with what I believe in my heart.

Following me now?

Ok.

Onto the next level….

If you believe in your heart that you are loved….do your actions reflect that? Are you showing love because you are loved?

If you believe in your heart that you are forgiven…do your actions reflect that? Do you walk in shame or with your head held high because you are free from condemnation???

If you believe in your heart that you trust the Lord to provide for you, care for you, comfort you …do your actions reflect that? Do you grieve with HOPE or do you feel hopeless in despair or live in constant fear???

Do you believe in your heart that Jesus’ words and promises are true? Do you live reaching for the abundant life He promised you, turning to Him when weary and accepting His offered rest, telling Him all your worries and receiving His peace that passes all understanding, claiming that you are NEVER alone for He is ALWAYS with you?

Or…

Are you living in doubt? Are you feeling hopeless? Are you feeling alone and as if NO ONE understands or cares? Do you feel you have no one to talk to? Do you feel that life will never get better?

As you think in your heart so you are.

Faith requires action on our part.

We have to do some work to get what we say we believe (head knowledge) down into our hearts (heart knowledge). When what we believe settles into our hearts then that will be what we become…what we reflect.

How do we do that though…

In my darkest days over this last year and half….or ten years if I’m being honest….I had to make a choice.

When I thought my marriage was over, I made a choice to not scream or yell….to not quit life…to not turn to old habits that were self destructive.

What did I do, you ask?

I cried. A lot. And hard.

My husband left for the weekend…basically, he left to do something that had been planned long in advance for him to do- the timing was perfect for us to have some space.

He left me and our children at a campground where my parents were.

They were left in the dark of the details of our ordeal but were sensing my need for emotional and spiritual solitude.

My folks helped with my sons while I sat at my camper staring at God’s creation in front of me, my Bible on my lap, and with songs of worship playing continually through the campers speaker.

I remember saying over and over…I TRUST YOU LORD. NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS,I TRUST YOU TO KEEP LOVING ME AND TO TAKE CARE OF ME for I am Your child.

I really didn’t know what my husband would decide on that trip “with the guys”- would he want to come home to “boring old me” and “family life” or would he want to be free from the things that restrained him?

I chose to not give in to fear that weekend and instead chose to trust in the One who had redeemed me.

Thankfully, God was working a miracle in my husband that weekend as I was preparing to let him go. Dan chose me. He chose our family. He chose our life and not the lifestyle he had been living.

Part of me wonders if what I thought in my heart made a difference in that situation…

I believed God loved me even when I had been unlovable (and still am at times) which enabled me to love my husband even after having been hurt by him so badly.

I believed God forgave me when I certainly did not deserve it and that empowered me to forgive my husband when close friends told me to leave him.

I believed that God could restore and make new all things because He had done so much inside of me and therefore clung to the promises spoken in the Bible: He can do infinitely more than we can dare dream, He can bring good from evil, He came to save the lost, a godly wife can bring about the salvation of her husband, love covers a multitude of sins…and on and on and on.

What if I hadn’t become what I thought in my heart to be true?

I could have been bitter. Unforgiving. Nasty. Desperate and pitiful. A victim.

What man would want to return home to that??

Since then, my husband has not only chosen US but he also made the decision to follow Christ for himself – NOT FOR ME.

Our life is incredibly different now than it was ten years ago!

That particular example has fueled me through so many other dark days since.

I tell myself…if I made that choice to trust in what I said I believed in then – how could I ever not do it again and again?

God was faithful to me then and He is faithful to me now and He will be faithful to me in the future.

I believe that in my heart to be true and want to live every day of my life showing that belief to others.

If you are struggling…. put on some praise and worship music – try singing along; read your Bible and ask God to show you something in His Word (and believe He will); PRAY honestly and continually.

The Bible says we are to be thankful in all things and that we are to rejoice always …make a list of what you are thankful for and rejoice over them.

Jesus wept, y’all….so feel what you feel and tell Him about it for He cares for you.

We are created to be a part of community…we have been reborn into the family of God. Don’t isolate yourself from people who can help share your burdens.

Look for Bible examples of your situation- are you in a “bad” marriage, are your kids wayward, is there job insecurity, are you ill, are you a widow or widower or orphan??? Cling to wisdom found in the examples!

Do the work to dig deeper into knowledge so your faith will grow and settle into your heart.

Sitting still doesn’t get us very far does it?

So do something instead.

If you believe in your heart that God has something more for you, then let Him work in your life so you can reflect that to others.

If you don’t believe that….then I would ask you to pray that God will help you with your unbelief and that He would shine some light into your heart to spark hope in it for hope can anchor your soul.

If Jesus can change my heart….redeem my marriage…and utterly transform my husband then I believe He will do the same for you when you trust Him.

Jesus loves you.

Blessings to you today.