The Anatomy of the Heart

A few years ago, I experienced some weird dizziness and vision episodes. I quickly got in to see my Ophthalmologist because a good friend of mine had experienced a detached retina, which made me hyper-sensitive when a vision problem arose. Upon examination, the doctor proclaimed my eyes to be fine but did order an echocardiogram of my heart just to make sure there were no clots or blockage that might have caused the episode.

Later, as I watched the technician perform an ultrasound of my heart and the surrounding valves and arteries, I was fascinated by the anatomy and workings of the heart! I could see in the images on the screen, the blood pumping through the valves by the contracting of the heart muscle. It was one of those moments when I was totally awe-struck by the power, intelligence, and creativity of our Creator! (By-the-way, my test was fine, and my symptoms ended up being associated with migraine headaches.)

Just as wondrous as the physical heart, is the other "heart" we all have, the spiritual heart. Everyone has a spiritual heart even if they are not "religious," for we are all made in His image - and He is a spiritual being. This is the metaphorical heart that we think of as the seat of our emotions, thoughts, and our soul. This one will not show up on some fancy medical test, but it's health is paramount to our well-being and, more importantly, to our eternity.

Who or what has captured your heart? That question has only two possible answers - the world or the Lord. It's that simple! Obviously, when faced with those two choices, most of us would want to answer, "The Lord!" Indeed, that is His desire.

• For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. 2 Chron. 16:9 (NAS)

That verse contains a great truth that should bolster us and give us hope. If our hearts are completely His, He will strongly support us! He will undergird us; He will be our stronghold in times of trials and stress; He will be our rock. Who doesn't need that kind of support?

And just like the physical heart that is continually pumping life-giving blood throughout the body, the spiritual heart is continually circulating the very essence of who we are as individuals to ourselves and to those around us.

So, whoever or whatever has captured your heart is what is being circulated. Ouch! I just stepped on my toes! Oh, we can disguise what our heart looks like, talks like - even smells like - for a time. But eventually, our true self seeps out. And eventhough we can camoflague what's really going on in our heart for a while, God knows.

• As for you...know the God of your father, and serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever. 1 Chron. 28:9 (NAS)

Scripture tells us in several places what the heart looks like if it is living for the world or if it is living for God. It's good to do a self-examination of your heart - first, to see who it belongs to, and then a re-examination ever so often because the world will slowly creep into your heart like plaque, and before you know it, you are not living like your hearts belong to Him.

Use these passages to perform a spiritual sonogram of your heart:

• But the words you speak come from the heart - that's what defiles you. From the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander... Matt. 15:18-19 (NLT)
• Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing.... Gal. 5:19-21 (NAS)
• Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowances for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts...always be thankful... Col. 3:12-15 (NLT)

So when the technician reads your test to see what and how things are circulating, what will the results be? Will she see your heart filled with the corosion of the world? Or will she see clear arteries stamped with God's approval?

That is a question that each one needs to ask ourself as we reflect on the anatomy of our own heart. Hopefully, we will see the attributes of God flowing steadily through us and out into the world around us. If not, we need futher treatment.

When Life Looks Bleak

I'm embarking on a study of Paul and his heart for God. As I was studying, I read through his and Silas' experience of being jailed for speaking about Jesus in Philippi. This is a post from last February about that experience.

How does life look to you right now? Is everything going your way and all is right with the world? Or are you at one of those junctions in life where things are not progressing the way you had hoped and dreamed? It is so much easier to smile and praise the Lord during our happy times than in our down times. Sometimes, we may even begin to wonder where God is and if He has abandoned us. No doubt, the most difficult step in our walk of faith is to trust Him when life is a bummer. It brings out the age-old question, "Why does a 'good' God let such bad things happen to good and or innocent people?"

That was the question discussed on the air-waves for weeks after the attacks of 9/11, and again, after the Tsunami hit Indonesia, and again, after the devastating earthquake in Haiti. Why would God allow such destruction? Obviously, I am not a scholar or a theologian (not a surprise if you've been reading my blog), but I can share what I've learned through personal experience and time with the Lord.

To begin with, I had to accept the fact that God is God - omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, and I am NOT. Therefore, I will never fully understand the mind of God and His ways until I am fully in His presence on the other side of this life. That usually doesn't set too well with the human mind that is inquisitive and strives for reason. "Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." Hebrews 11:1 - Our walk with Christ is a walk of faith. That has to be nailed down in order to move forward in that relationship.

With that said, God DOES allow bad things to happen to good people. However, His Word assures us that "Everything will work together for good, to them who love the Lord and who are called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28 - We saw that with the stoning death of Stephen in the book of Acts. That horrible death was the pivotal event that caused the newly-birthed Church to be ravaged by the likes of legalistic Jews like Saul. That persecution caused the Christians to scatter in all directions away from Jerusalem. It was the beginning of the fulfillment of the Great Commission - taking the gospel to "Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth." God used the murder of Stephen to spread the Good News to the rest of the earth - that was the "good" that came from his death.

God will use everything to work His purpose in this world. When life throws us a curve, we need to seek His will and purpose and not give in to the human nature of anger, bitterness, hatred, or even the desire for revenge. I know upfront that I won't be able to accomplish that on my own. My nature is so "human!" I must rely on the power of the Holy Spirit - God's power in me - to look for His purpose and His desired reaction. Sometimes, He wants us to do something immediately. He told the Jerusalem Christians to go - to leave Jerusalem for safety reasons, but, ultimately, to spread the Gospel.

Later in Acts, He told Paul and Silas to stay - in their prison cell - to spread the Gospel. Paul and Silas found themselves in the city of Philippi on their second missionary journey (Acts 16:12-40). Philippi was in a Roman colony on the continent of Europe, and they continued to spread the Gospel westward. While there, they stirred up a commotion among the citizens when Paul cast out an evil spirit from a girl who had been following them and yelling at them for several days. The problem was with this slave girl's master. Once the evil spirit was gone, she could no longer make him money with her fortune-telling. Paul and Silas were eventually brought before the magistrate, who had them beaten, shackled, and thrown into prison. Their relationship with the Lord allowed them to be joyful - even in the midst of a deadly situation. By midnight, they were praying and singing hymns of praise - and the other prisoners were listening to them while the jailer had fallen asleep.

How could they be so full of joy after and during such an event? They were beaten with clubs and then their feet fastened into stocks. I can't really imagine how difficult it would be to endure such an attack. All through the book of Acts, we've seen how important prayer had become to those early believers. And in this dire situation, Paul and Silas once again turned to prayer. That is how their human nature of bitterness and desire for revenge did not overtake them. Their spiritual nature of peace and joy in whatever circumstances they found themselves in did take over. So much so, that they started singing - right there in the prison cell! The heavens reacted to their praise with a huge earthquake that shook the very foundation of the prison house - even causing the cell doors to open and their shackles to unfasten!

Here is where they had to really listen to the Holy Spirit and not their own. My spirit would have looked at those open doors and loose shackles, and said, "Run for your life!" But when the jailer did go in, ready to kill himself for letting the prisoners escape, there they were - all of the prisoners - not just Paul and Silas! Don't you know the jailer looked at those guys with astonishment? In fact, verse 29 says with trembling and fear he fell down before Paul and Silas and asked what he had to do to be saved! They told him, he responded, and he met Jesus! As far as we know, he was the first Roman soldier on European soil to become a believer and follower of Christ!

God used the difficult situation with Stephen. The Spirit told those Jerusalem Christians to go, which they did, and the gospel was spread throughout the region. God used the difficult situation with Paul and Silas. The Spirit told them to stay, which they did, and the gospel was spread to Europe. No situation we may find ourselves in is for naught in God's purposes. He will take whatever comes our way - good or not - and use it for His good - IF we allow Him access to our hearts.

If it hasn't happened to you yet, it will. Life will throw you a curve - probably several. You, all of us, will endure some type of suffering in this life. How will we react? Whenever I suffer, whether it's a little or a lot, I don't want it to be wasted suffering! I want to be spiritually able to release it to Him and let it be used for His purposes. I want to hear Him say, "Stay," or "Go". I want those times to be markers on my walk of faith that represent something good that He has done. What about you?