May 4th
"Guard the inside."
If you're typical, you think of guarding your heart in terms of keeping things out. Corruption, false ideas, temptations all are to be held at arm's length, never to be allowed in the inner depths of your affections. But there's another side to this vigilance. We are to keep things in. In fact, if we can master that, the corruptions and temptations will often take care of themselves.
Think about it: The things that can assail a heart from the outside are innumerable, far too overwhelming to manage. But the things we are told to keep within; the spirit of Jesus, the humility and gentleness, the servanthood and sacrifice, the worship and thankfulness, these are one Spirit. Most religions tell us to avoid the bad; God tells us to embrace Him. We are better equipped to focus on His character than on the enemy's devices. Nowhere are we told to live against the sinful nature and hope that the Spirit will show up. We're told to live by the Spirit and expect the sinful nature to have no power. We often get confused about that.
Above all else, guard your heart, for it affects everything you do.
Proverbs 4:23
Heaven
