Guard Your Heart
I grew up desperate to belong. See, when I was 7 years old my family and I moved to a distant island in the South Pacific, where no one looked like me and the culture was vastly different than that of Fresno, CA where I came from. For some of the kids out there, it was their first time ever seeing someone that looked like me. One little boy, upon seeing my blue eyes, incredulously asked me, “Is everything blue when you look around?!” He could not wrap his head around someone having something other than dark brown eyes. Over the years, I had two main groups of friends. One group was the non-local kids (some American, some not), who came and went every few years. The other group was the local kids, most of whom were born and raised on the island. With each group, I perfected a persona that would help me belong most effectively. I could seamlessly move between personas to fit the needs of whichever group I was interacting with.
Fast forward to turning 17 and being told that I was moving back to the States to finish high school and then go on to college. Big change! I had grown my roots and found belonging on the island and now was going to completely uproot everything and start all over again. God of course knew what he was doing and got a hold of me pretty quickly when I moved back. I remember in our high school youth group, we would talk about the verse, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” (Proverbs 4:23 NIV) When I got to college I started hanging around with a pretty diverse group of people and, as I perfected my personas just like I had as a child, this verse came to my mind over and over again. The problem was that my strong desire to belong and my newfound independence led me to make choices that absolutely did not guard my heart. It’s taken me a lot of years to let the truth of that verse sink in and change the choices I make.
I think that’s why the breastplate of righteousness in Ephesians 6:14 resonates with me so much. When you think about a soldier going into battle, they have to have solid armor to protect all of the vital organs in the torso. One of the most important? The heart! The breastplate in battle provides crucial protection against injury. But in this metaphor that Paul is using in Ephesians, what does the breastplate have to do with righteousness? This righteousness, God’s holiness and perfection, comes to us through Jesus’ death and resurrection on the cross. Because Jesus takes our place by living the life we should have lived and dying the death we deserved to die, he offers a covering of righteousness to block out the devil’s attacks on our hearts and souls. When we continually put on the breastplate of righteousness, we secure it with the belt of truth, to keep the breastplate in place. Once it’s there, we can fully guard our hearts.
Now, the temptation here is to muscle up and “do” lots of things to guard our hearts. When we use the breastplate of righteousness, we need to realize that righteousness doesn’t come from good works (Isaiah 64:6). It doesn’t matter how often we attend church, how much community service we do, or how often we read the Bible. If we don’t walk the path God has set before us to walk, our “good works” have no value. They become nothing more than box checks along the way. Fortunately, we have the Holy Spirit to guide us as we walk the path and provide us with holy conviction when we get into that “box check” territory.
Is this an area of struggle for you? You’re not alone! Take a minute and pray this prayer, and know that I’m praying it right along with you:
Heavenly Father, no one is righteous, not one of us. But you have given us the gift of righteousness to follow the path you have set before us, and to avoid the snares of temptation and sin set up by the devil. Help me to pursue you today. Whenever I encounter temptation, help me to find a way out (1 Corinthians 10:13). Steer me away from situations or places which may tempt me more to sin, and when I am tempted, remind me of your goodness and that you are the way of life. No matter what these temptations may promise, they cannot promise me eternal life, joy, or love, which comes from you alone. Arm me with the breastplate of righteousness today, so I may be ready when Satan attempts to take me down on the battlefield. Amen.
Erin is a speaker and leadership development professional who has been in the learning and development field for over 12 years. She has a unique ability to engage with her audience and create learning experiences that inspire change and action. She is poised, articulate and delivers her message with passion.
Erin feels that God has called her to use her professional skills to further His kingdom. She is passionate about helping people develop skills and knowledge that will empower them to answer Jesus’ call in their lives and understand how they are uniquely wired to respond to His leading. See Erin's other writings at: www.erhspeaks.com