A Joyful Heart
“A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken”. Proverbs 15:13
From Genesis to revelation one thing stands out: God want our whole heart and He is asking for our whole heart for two reasons. First, the only way to be saved is by giving Him our heart; second, giving Him our whole heart every day is the only way we will live a joyful and prosperous life –a balanced life.
Luke 8:14-15 (MSG) – “And the seed that fell in the weeds—well, these are the ones who hear, but then the seed is crowded out and nothing comes of it as they go about their lives worrying about tomorrow, making money, and having fun. “But the seed in the good earth—these are the good-hearts who seize the Word and hold on no matter what, sticking with it until there’s a harvest.”
The quality of the soil determines the growth and quality of the harvest. Seeds need good soil to grow into strong, healthy plants and bring forth a great harvest. Likewise; the Word of God (the seed) will flourish in a good (joyful) heart (the soil). The message version of this parable says that our heart can be consumed with “worrying about tomorrow, making money and having fun” until these things literally push God’s Word out of our heart. In the same parable, Jesus told us that the “good hearts” are those who grab hold of His Word and never let go until it produces what God has sent it to produce. Proverbs 4:20-23 says; “Dear friend, listen well to my words; tune your ears to my voice. Keep my message in plain view at all times. Concentrate! Learn it by heart! Those who discover these words live, really live; body and soul, they’re bursting with health. Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts.”
A good heart is a joyful heart, and a joyful heart is essential to receiving everything we need from God and everything He has given us. Therefore, it is important for us to keep our hearts free from the weeds of life, so that the soil of our hearts will be of the highest quality for the Word of God to grow in us and transform our lives. According to Mathew 6:25-34; if we want to keep a joyful good heart, we must get rid of worrying and anxiety, learn to trust God and continue to walk in faith and confidence, knowing our lives are secure in His hands.
Today is the day to pull all the weeds out! Are you worried about anything? Is there a family, health, financial and business matter (good or bad) that has totally captured your mind and heart? Problem isn’t the only thing that crowd out God’s word from our heart. Sometimes financial success and having fun over-shadows the word and turn our hearts toward money instead of God. Examine your heart and see whether there is weeds (doubt, fear, anxiety, worrying, unbelieve, weariness) growing in your heart (Proverbs 12:25, Job 3:25, 2 Timothy 1:7). Pull out any weed that would make the word of God unfruitful in your heart. Pull them out and let the soil of your heart be of the highest quality for the word of God to grow and transform your life. Remember, Proverbs 17:22 says, “A merry (joyful) heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.