ABOVE ALL ELSE…

Essential 2, Week 2, Day 1 “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of your life.” Proverbs 4:23 What is a wellspring? In general a wellspring is a source of continual and dependable supply of clean water. The word “wellspring '' connects two words that when put together connote a continuous flow of unpolluted clean water. The comparison of one's heart with a wellspring may be obscure for you because your clean water flows through bathrooms, kitchens and outdoor faucets. We don’t fret about water pollution taking for granted the plumbing that connects to reservoirs and artesian wells fed by underground springs. However, without those springs we would not survive for very long. Hezekiah, King of Judah, “trusted in the LORD, God of Israel.” (2Kings 18:5) In his fourteenth year of his reign, the king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. Then the king of Assyria and his armies approached Jerusalem stopping at the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, the water source for Jerusalem. Instead of attacking the walls of the city, the armies turned off the supply of water and began a siege waging a propaganda war of words demanding that the people surrender. The siege lasted three years. Sensing that the people of Jerusalem were desperate, the king of Assyria sent a message to Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem: “Make peace with me and come out to me. Then every one of you will eat from his own vine and fig tree and drink water from his own [well.]” (2Kings 18:31) You can read the full remarkable story of what happened in 2Kings 18:1 - 19:37. What does the image of a wellspring have to do with your heart? Throughout scripture “heart” represents one's essence, your core beliefs and passions. Perhaps the most quoted example of a scripture use of “heart” is David’s cry out in Psalm 51:10: “Create in me a pure heart, O God and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (NIV) Throughout his compelling Psalm, David is confessing that his heart had been polluted by his sin of committing adultery and murder. He recognized that a polluted heart will poison and eventually kill him. So, how did he respond to that recognition? Read Psalm 51 and underline or highlight David’s humble confession and sincere requests beginning with the following verbs: “Have mercy, Wash away, Cleanse me, Create in me, Restore me, Save me.” Have you allowed your wellspring to become polluted through your attitudes, thoughts, actions, and words? While we may not have literally committed adultery or murder, your attitudes, thoughts and words little by little pollute and poison your heart beliefs and passions. That is why Solomon, King David’s son, instructs his son and by extension us to “above all else guard your heart.” Solomon knows how easy it is to corrupt our inner heart. I visited a missionary who lived in Kurungu, Kenya. Kurungu is in the middle of a vast desert in northwest Kenya. For most of each year the high mountains, huge sand hills and wide riverbeds remain dry and desolate. We actually were able to slide down sand hills into the riverbed below as if the sand was snow. However, my friend missionary told me about what happens each year in the short rainy season. Rain floods riverbeds overflow into the desert creating a massive lake full of catfish. So, where did the catfish come from? The answer is that for most of each year the catfish burrow deep in the mud and hibernate. Then when the rains come they become a mass of writhing, muddy fish you can catch with your hands. However, If you were to catch one and try to filet, cook and eat it, your mouth would fill up with muddy sand, because the fish have been polluted by the mud they hibernated in. What does the wellspring of your heart hold? Outwardly your life may appear to be a pristine landscape of purity. But what if someone could look into the depths of your heart? Would there be a mess of muddy sins or a well of clean water? How should you guard your heart? Like David, go before God through prayer asking for mercy and forgiveness, asking God to create in you a pure heart. David writes in Psalm 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart…” Then going forward in God’s grace protect your heart above all else by asking God each morning to create in you a pure heart. And every night before going to bed ask the Holy Spirit to influence you to “desire truth in the inner parts; …[and] teach you wisdom in the inmost place” (Psalm 51:6) because your “ heart is the wellspring of [your] life.” (Proverbs 4:23) Prayer: Father God, have mercy according to your love. Wash away my impure attitudes, thoughts, words and actions. Create in me a clean heart as I confess my sinful nature. Forgive me and purify me from all unrighteousness. Encouragement God is for you, not against you. He has provided the Holy Spirit as your counselor who patiently points you to God’s mercy and restoration that comes through confession.