February 15th, 2023
“You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.”
– Saint Augustine
This seemingly simple sentence was written over 1,600 years ago in Augustine’s Confessions but is still a widely known quote, today. Why is that? Augustine’s musings to His creator still resonate with the 21st century Christian because centuries cannot change the longing of the human heart.
The Bible has a great deal to say about our spiritual hearts – called our “heart” because of its centrality to our spiritual well-being. Just as a healthy physical heart is central to every other function of the body, a healthy spiritual heart is absolutely essential to our spiritual life. Our heart’s health will reflect our health in every other area. Proverbs 27:19 says,
“As in water face reflects face, so, the heart of man reflects the man.”
No human being can see another’s heart. We initially evaluate other people by looks, manners, clothing, status, etc. However, the Bible tells us that God cares about none of that, looking only on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).
So, how do we know if our heart is healthy? First of all, we have to understand the massive capacity of the human heart. Your heart is a vessel, a container, capable of receiving, holding, and pouring out. We all understand that in the natural, a heart that isn’t beating means life has ceased, but it’s the same in the spiritual. Just as our hearts pump oxygenated blood to the rest of our bodies, our spiritual hearts pump life into our spirits. Proverbs 4:23 says,
“Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.”
Jesus Himself said in John 7:38,
“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”
A healthy spiritual heart is vibrant and alive, with rivers of God’s life—the Holy Spirit, flowing out of it to us and the world around us. One of the ways that life flows from us is by the words that we speak. Matthew 12:34-35 says,
“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.”
Our words carry the power to affect the world around us and they proceed from what’s already in our hearts. We have to ensure they’re full of the fresh, living water of God’s Word and Spirit. James 3:11-12 says,
“Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.”
Just as a natural heart has to be healthy to function properly, your spiritual heart won’t function the way it’s supposed to outside of God’s will. What you fill your spirit with determines what flows from it. You can’t feed your physical body garbage and expect to have a healthy heart and your spirit is no different! A carnal heart still has the capacity to be filled, but it will be filled with all the wrong things. Look at what the word of God says about hearts outside of His purpose.
Now, if you find your heart in any of the states above, there is good news! There is an answer for the heart that is dull, bitter, or broken, and it’s the simplicity of the gospel. God loves to bind up the broken-hearted. He waits to heal us when we ask!
When we receive the kingdom of God and are filled with the life of Jesus, the Bible tells us we get a brand-new heart, with new capacity to be fill. It’s a promise of God’s covenant with His people. Ezekiel 11:19-20 says,
“And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God.”
A heart of stone is unyielding, without the ability to stretch and receive. However, when God creates in us a heart of flesh, it can open to receive all that He has for us. Romans 5:5 tells us that God’s love has been poured into our hearts, and it’s only when we have been filled with that love that we can love the people around us. Psalms 119:11 says,
“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”
Our hearts can actually carry the living Word Of God. What is stored up in your heart? Is it full of God’s love and His word, in alignment with him? The Bible tells us what a heart in agreement with His purpose looks like. I encourage you to read each of these scriptures:
I want to ask you this week: How is your heart? It’s not intended to be filled with stress, fear, sadness, anger, bitterness, or anything else that the enemy would try to pour into it. Your heart was created to be filled with His love and goodness. It was created to be filled with Him. It’s only when your heart beats with His love that it becomes a spring of life—nourishing your spirit and carrying the life of God to those around you. Let your heart be filled afresh today with the power of His love; the life of His presence; and the strength of His joy. As Augustine understood, and every believer who has ever encountered Him knows, our hearts are restless, until they beat only for Him.
– Saint Augustine
This seemingly simple sentence was written over 1,600 years ago in Augustine’s Confessions but is still a widely known quote, today. Why is that? Augustine’s musings to His creator still resonate with the 21st century Christian because centuries cannot change the longing of the human heart.
The Bible has a great deal to say about our spiritual hearts – called our “heart” because of its centrality to our spiritual well-being. Just as a healthy physical heart is central to every other function of the body, a healthy spiritual heart is absolutely essential to our spiritual life. Our heart’s health will reflect our health in every other area. Proverbs 27:19 says,
“As in water face reflects face, so, the heart of man reflects the man.”
No human being can see another’s heart. We initially evaluate other people by looks, manners, clothing, status, etc. However, the Bible tells us that God cares about none of that, looking only on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).
So, how do we know if our heart is healthy? First of all, we have to understand the massive capacity of the human heart. Your heart is a vessel, a container, capable of receiving, holding, and pouring out. We all understand that in the natural, a heart that isn’t beating means life has ceased, but it’s the same in the spiritual. Just as our hearts pump oxygenated blood to the rest of our bodies, our spiritual hearts pump life into our spirits. Proverbs 4:23 says,
“Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.”
Jesus Himself said in John 7:38,
“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”
A healthy spiritual heart is vibrant and alive, with rivers of God’s life—the Holy Spirit, flowing out of it to us and the world around us. One of the ways that life flows from us is by the words that we speak. Matthew 12:34-35 says,
“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.”
Our words carry the power to affect the world around us and they proceed from what’s already in our hearts. We have to ensure they’re full of the fresh, living water of God’s Word and Spirit. James 3:11-12 says,
“Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.”
Just as a natural heart has to be healthy to function properly, your spiritual heart won’t function the way it’s supposed to outside of God’s will. What you fill your spirit with determines what flows from it. You can’t feed your physical body garbage and expect to have a healthy heart and your spirit is no different! A carnal heart still has the capacity to be filled, but it will be filled with all the wrong things. Look at what the word of God says about hearts outside of His purpose.
- Hearts can be drawn away from Him. (Deuteronomy 30:17, 1 Kings 11:4)
- Hearts can fail for fear. (1 Samuel 17:32, Proverbs 12:25)
- Hearts can grow dull and unfeeling. (Matthew 13:15)
- Hearts can grow sick. (Proverbs 13:12, Jeremiah 17:9, Lamentations 5:17)
- Hearts can break. (Psalm 51:17)
- Hearts can grow hard and impenitent. (Romans 2:5)
- Hearts can become crooked. (Proverbs 17:20)
- Hearts can be filled with bitterness and unforgiveness. (Proverbs 14:10)
- Hearts can be deceived. (Deuteronomy 11:16)
- Hearts can be filled with every manner of evil. (Acts 5:3, Hebrews 3:12)
Now, if you find your heart in any of the states above, there is good news! There is an answer for the heart that is dull, bitter, or broken, and it’s the simplicity of the gospel. God loves to bind up the broken-hearted. He waits to heal us when we ask!
When we receive the kingdom of God and are filled with the life of Jesus, the Bible tells us we get a brand-new heart, with new capacity to be fill. It’s a promise of God’s covenant with His people. Ezekiel 11:19-20 says,
“And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God.”
A heart of stone is unyielding, without the ability to stretch and receive. However, when God creates in us a heart of flesh, it can open to receive all that He has for us. Romans 5:5 tells us that God’s love has been poured into our hearts, and it’s only when we have been filled with that love that we can love the people around us. Psalms 119:11 says,
“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”
Our hearts can actually carry the living Word Of God. What is stored up in your heart? Is it full of God’s love and His word, in alignment with him? The Bible tells us what a heart in agreement with His purpose looks like. I encourage you to read each of these scriptures:
- It’s clean and pure. (Psalms 51:10, Matthew 5:8, 1 Peter 1:22)
- It’s righteous and upright, by the power of the blood of Jesus. (Psalms 97:11)
- It’s whole. (2 Chronicles 19:9, Psalm 119:2, Jeremiah 29:13)
- It’s true. (Hebrews 10:22)
- It’s tender and compassionate. (2 Chronicles 34:26-27, Colossians 3:12)
- It’s wise. (Proverbs 10:8)
- It’s strong. (Psalm 73:26)
- It’s steady, fearless, and unshaken. (Psalm 112:8, John 14:27)
- It’s full of joy. (Proverbs 17:22)
- It’s at peace. (Proverbs 14:30, John 14:27, Philippians 4:7)
I want to ask you this week: How is your heart? It’s not intended to be filled with stress, fear, sadness, anger, bitterness, or anything else that the enemy would try to pour into it. Your heart was created to be filled with His love and goodness. It was created to be filled with Him. It’s only when your heart beats with His love that it becomes a spring of life—nourishing your spirit and carrying the life of God to those around you. Let your heart be filled afresh today with the power of His love; the life of His presence; and the strength of His joy. As Augustine understood, and every believer who has ever encountered Him knows, our hearts are restless, until they beat only for Him.
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