An Undivided Heart
I feel like my heart is divided often between what I want and what the Lord wants of me and from me. I have surrendered my heart to Him years ago, but I also face choices each day that reveal where the allegiance of my heart lies. I’m part of a group at our church who are studying and being equipped to counsel through an organization called Association of Biblical Counselors (ABC). We are pursuing Level 1 Certification as Biblical Counselors. This journey has been a challenge at times due to amount of work required. The study of God’s Word has been very rich and rewarding for sure. As we’ve been studying, it has been revealed to me often that my heart’s attention and affection is easily divided. I’m on a journey pursuing the Lord’s heart each day. There are times I’m distracted by other ideas the enemy puts in my path. I can become self-centered in a microsecond. As I read this Psalm of David this morning, it became my prayer too. I can feel David’s struggle too. Check this out…
11 Teach me your way, Lord,
that I may rely on your faithfulness;
give me an undivided heart,
that I may fear your name.
12 I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify your name forever.
13 For great is your love toward me;
you have delivered me from the depths,
from the realm of the dead. (Psalm 86:11-13 NIV)
I really need the help of the Lord to have an undivided heart. His Spirit in me can give me incredible discernment and wisdom as I walk through my day. I want to honor Him in the words I speak to others and to myself. I want to speak words of encouragement, inspiration, guidance & love to others. I want to represent the Lord with a devoted heart NOT a divided heart. I have come to believe that this struggle will go on as long as I live in this world of choices and distractions.
This psalm reminded me of a promise from God to His people in Ezekiel upon their return from captivity.
19 I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. 20 Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God. (Ezekiel 11:19-20 NIV)
I’m asking God to heal my divided heart – restore my heart completely for His sake. My journey will be an amazing by-product of a heart wholly devoted to the Lord. A divided heart is a broken heart.
Pressing On!
Dwayne