By Brenda Cannon Henley
February is traditionally thought of as “heart month” around the world and especially in America do we make a really big day out of Valentine Day on the 14th. Everyone enjoys receiving that special Valentine card, note, gift, flowers, candy, jewelry, or fishing rod and reel. It is a wonderful day to express genuine love, affection, romance, and happiness with those in our circles. It has always been one of my very favorite holidays. The Bible has much to say about hearts, too, and I was rather surprised today when reading in Scripture several of the more prominent verses having to do with the human heart. “Who can know the heart?” is one such reference. We are told to love with all our hearts, not to have a double heart, and that as a man (or woman) thinks in his heart, so is he.

We find that the king’s heart was changed due to faithful prayer, several verses about fearful hearts, and even deceitful hearts. I find verses about prideful hearts, pure hearts, good hearts, and young and old hearts. The more I read, the more intrigued I became with what the Bible taught about this major subject which often controls our tongues, our thoughts, our actions, our habits, and our way of life. Several verses dealt with the hardness of human’s heart and what happens in the life when this takes place inside in the heart of a man or a woman. We are warned not to nurse strife in our hearts and to keep kind and pure hearts. Luke 6:46 teaches that out of the abundance of the heart does the mouth speak.

In thinking about that one verse, I learned so much about the capacity of the heart. What we store up in our hearts comes out in our words and actions. If a person is continually unhappy, going about gossiping, backbiting, hurting others, wanting things changed so that he or she is thought better of, eager to be in charge, to be seen as a leader, those things seep out in actions that all can see. We must be very careful about what we store in our hearts because sooner or later, it will come booming out and all will know about our evil and callous heart. We may look pretty good on the outside, present a clean and polished exterior, take pride in our accomplishments, and compare ourselves favorably with others, but with time and energy, the real us comes out on display. We talk ugly, we have a bitter spirit, we choose to put people down, and we act haughty and high minded.

God forbid that we pattern that example for our children, our families, our coworkers, our neighbors, and for those we don’t even know.

My favorite verse that I found today is I Samuel 16:7. “The Lord sees not as man sees, for man (or woman) looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” Aren’t you glad of that truth today and that will stand the test of time? No matter what some mean, bitter spirited person says about you, it doesn’t make it true. And, according to Scripture, no man can see our hearts. Only God can. I am so thankful for that truth. God knows that when others misinterpret my deeds, my words, my actions, or my plans, God knows what I was thinking and what I wanted to accomplishment. He knows the very intent of my heart.

I would remind each of us today that we truly do not know that much about each other in reality. We can see the outward shell or the clothes we are wearing. We can determine the kind of car we drive, the home in which we live, where we work, or where we like to play. But only God knows our hearts.

Realizing this truth also brings great responsibility. Knowing that God knows our hearts ought to make us want to live right and to house only good things in our hearts. And, it should help us to remember that in time and in the right circumstance, whatever we are harboring in our hearts, will likely come out and expose us for what we really are.

Happy Valentine Day and may your heart be blessed.

(This article published 2/2/2015)

Brenda Cannon Henley can be reached at (409) 781-8788, at
[email protected], or by using the contact form below.

Contact Brenda Cannon Henley:
[contact-form-7 404 "Not Found"]