No doubt many of you guys, like myself, have been heavy and heartbroken over the last couple of weeks. We live in such a time where information is available to us on a grand scale. No human heart was made to carry and be exposed to all the burdens of the entire world. It used to be that just the knowledge of what was going on in the communities we live in was enough, but now we are flooded with the burdens of the entire world weighing on our hearts as we scroll the news highlights on social media in disbelief.
I recently found myself having to back off of the ongoing barrage of information because I recognized it was affecting my heart in a negative way. Don’t misunderstand me: Information is one thing, but deformation of our heart is another.
Information is important for us to know how to help and how to take action, but when too much information begins to deform our hearts, that’s when we need to step away for a minute.
Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life. - Proverbs 4:23
If you are feeling lifeless today, if your heart is extra heavy by the weight of burdens that are not meant for you to bear, look at how much information you are allowing into your heart. Are you walking away informed or deformed? Is too much information beginning to impact your day to day tasks? It’s one thing to be informed, but it’s another thing to allow too much information to deform our hearts. It’s ok to pull away, to protect your heart and to love those around you well.
Your heart is where you see the signs of life with God in your soul. So if you are feeling lifeless, if you are seeing signs of death in your soul, watch what you are putting into your heart. If you’ve been given a new heart (a heart filled with the very spirit of God), guard it like your life depends on it, because it does.
It’s ok to step away. It’s ok to care for your heart, while you care for others. Whatever you do, guard your heart, because your heart is ‘the first thing that lives and the last thing that dies.’ If your heart is right, so will your actions be.
Remember, only God is able to carry the weight of the world’s burdens.
Practical ways you can guard your heart:
* Step away from the news and social media for a time. Pray.
* Be present with your family and your community.
* Look where God is working around you and get involved.
