Clearing Out the Clutter

You have a space that you’ve intended to clean… it’s been on your to-do list for a while now. Maybe you’re waiting for spring?

For me, it's my spice cabinet. It’s where I keep spices, oils, sauces, and flavors. But, unfortunately, it's cluttered and difficult to find what you’re looking for.

Recently, my husband Jared mentioned that I need to clean out the cabinet. I agreed with him and had purposed in my heart to do so, but if I’m honest, I procrastinated because I didn’t know where to begin.

The other night, Jared opened the cabinet, and as he reached for a spice, a glass of vanilla fell from the second shelf, landed on my new phone screen, and shattered it. I finally saw the need to clear out the clutter.

After my phone had broken, I sat down and looked at the damage the clutter had caused and made it a priority to MAKE SPACE.

Our hearts are a sacred space that we are responsible for tending to. Scripture states, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23 NKJV). Another translation states, “Above all else, guard your heart…” (NIV).

What are the things we find important?

It differs for everyone. For many, it’s faith, family, friends, career goals, good financial status, etc. For many, it is enjoying life, being a good person, having a good reputation, and feeling good about how we live.

All of these things are great! I would even say these are all very positive things. So we aren’t bad for investing some time into these things.

However, scripture says, “Above all else, guard your heart…”

WAIT. That means that you must pay attention to what is in your heart, not just what you do... It means ABOVE ALL ELSE, make sure your heart is guarded.

The passage of scriptures goes on to state that we shouldn’t gossip or speak of corrupt things, we should fix our eyes on what’s ahead, give careful thought to what we do, keep from evil, and BE steadfast in all our ways.

What if started paying more attention to what is in our hearts? What if we made sure our hearts are pure?

Based on what I am learning in scripture, a guarded heart looks like this: loving, selfless, kind, generous, caring, gracious, compassionate, noble, good, faithful. A heart devoted to God’s Truth and His Presence. What if THIS is our highest priority?

If all we do flows from our hearts then our actions and our words truly show what’s in us… the schedules we keep and the lives we lead are a mirror of what our hearts value.

If we want to know the “pulse” of our hearts, we can listen to what we talk about: do we gossip? Do we try to make others look bad? Do we complain? Do we hold grudges? Do we envy? These things can clutter up our hearts so much that we cannot find what matters most.

If we want to know the status of our hearts, we can look at our actions: are we kind to people? Are we forgiving? Do we give generously? Do we serve faithfully? Do we live a life devoted to PRAYER and God’s WORD? Do we care for others EVEN IF they don’t deserve it?

Here is the truth straight from scripture: “…For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (I Samuel‬ ‭16:7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬)

There is no shortage of things to fill up your heart. No shortage of distractions from what matters most. There is no deficit of things to take the eyes of your heart off of Jesus.

The Lord longs to fill us with more of him. Based on His word, he wants to work IN us and THROUGH us, but there has to be SPACE for Him. No one can clean out the cabinet of your heart but YOU.

Today, I encourage you…

Ask God to show you how to clear out any clutter in your heart. Take time and LISTEN to what He speaks to you.

What needs to be laid down on the altar to make space for more of His Presence? Maybe it means less social media, a more-focused prayer time, and more time in His Word. Perhaps it means forgiveness and laying down fear.

As you clear out the clutter, you will find that there is MORE SPACE for Jesus… and where He is, everything changes.

Check Your Blind Spots

As we have discussed many times over the last few weeks, Samson led a life that gave way to self-destruction. We now must realize that among his issues was a lack of recognition for his “blind spots.” And, if we are to avoid his same fate, we must learn from his error.

Recognition can start with an embrace of a profound instruction from King Solomon in Proverbs 4:23, “Keep your heart with all diligence.” Undoubtedly, we all hope to do just that! But our problem – like Samson – is that we all have blind spots. And, they exist regardless of the level of our diligence.

Jeremiah warned us of blind spots in this way:

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?” (Jeremiah 17:9 NLT).

Jeremiah clearly states that no man can see everything that his heart is hiding. Therefore we must develop a strategy for checking our blind spots. Think of it in this way. In the same way, you must check the blind spots your car’s frame creates when you turn or merge lanes, so you must check your heart’s blind spots to end up in a spiritual wreck.

How can we check our BLIND SPOTS?

Try these simple questions to check two potential blind spots:

1. WHAT AM I SAYING?

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaks. -Luke 6:45 (NKJV)

Are you curious if you have given your whole heart to God? Then, listen to what you are saying, especially in unguarded moments when you feel comfortable amongst your company. Your tongue will always tell on your heart.

1. TO WHOM AM I GIVING?

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. -Matthew 6:21 (NKJV)

You can not find a single time in Samson’s life that he gave a sacrifice to God. Not. Once. In contrast, the first time Samson’s parents heard God’s instruction for their family, they immediately responded with an offering to Heaven. It is then bewildering that the only time in Samson’s entire storyline that you can find him giving anything – to anyone – was when he offered a woman a gift in the hope of sex. Yet, it was the same gift his parents gave to God when they found out he would be born (Ref. Judges 13:19; 15:1)! Not. A. Coincidence.

Meaningful connections with God directly result from what is going on in our hearts. And according to Jesus, meaningfulness can be easily rerouted to meaningless experiences if we choose the wrong destinations for our treasure – because our hearts will wind up at that same location. Of course, it’s fantastic to bless other people in your life, have hobbies, do fun things, get ahead, and leave an inheritance. But there is one thing that needs to come first – GOD. If He is not at the forefront of how you distribute your treasure, then He does not have your whole heart.

On Samson’s last day, he decided to surrender his heart to God. In response, the Bible states that he accomplished more for the Kingdom of God on that day than he had in his ENTIRE life. But consider this…there was very little to compare to that day – his LAST day. He had done very little for God! It didn't take much to surpass an entire life’s body of work in one moment. Talk about a meaningless life!

Thankfully, we have a God who seems willing to accept death-bed conversations. But, learn from Samson’s mistake and don’t wait until your last day to give God your heart. Instead, start making an impact today. God created you for a meaningful life filled with meaningful connections.

Check your blind spots and honestly evaluate the posture of your heart. Does God have all of it? It’s never too late to surrender your heart, step into a meaningful relationship with God, and start living the life of meaning and purpose God has planned for you!

I invite you to view this message in its entirety at this link: https://youtu.be/c_DPzy71VBc

WATCH IT | DISCUSSION GUIDE| MESSAGE NOTES

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