“Lord, don’t let my heart get hard.”
Phil and I were snowed in on Sunday. Our road had not been plowed and since it was 9 degrees when we woke up, the surface of our road was snow and ice. It was beautiful, especially since we are blessed with a wood stove and are able to look out our windows from a place of warmth.
We took some time to share what was on our hearts – what we felt that God has been impressing on each of us. Then we prayed.
One thing I shared with Phil was that I did not want to allow a critical, or hard heart to develop. I don’t want my grandchildrens’ foremost memory of me to be
“NO”.
We probably all have family members who are most remembered for their critical, crabby attitude, especially as they got older. I don’t want to be one of those people.
Each of our older grandchildren have gone through a “no” phase, usually from around 18 months to two years of age. We recognize this as a stage in development that is normal as a child learns that they are a separate entity and that they have a free will. They also learn that words express meaning – “no” means “I don’t want to”. As caring parents and grandparents we need to discipline these children to understand that they can not always have their own way – nor should they. “No” is sometimes good for us.
How we respond to “no” becomes a matter of the heart – for each of us as well as our children.
Hard hearts develop when we refuse to accept that what we desire may not be God’s will for us.
My friend Patti shared at our last Bible study session on Ezekiel that the recurring theme of that book (not my favorite, I must admit, but needed by me) was the heart condition of God’s people – REBELLION.
Our heart problems start with rebellion.
When our children say “no” to us, it expresses their rebellion, their disobedience. Their hearts become hard instead of tender. They want their own way.
When we say “no” to God, it expresses our rebellion and begins the hardening process in our hearts.
Matthew 13: 14-16
14 This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says,
‘When you hear what I say,
you will not understand.
When you see what I do,
you will not comprehend.
15 For the hearts of these people are hardened,
and their ears cannot hear,
and they have closed their eyes—
so their eyes cannot see,
and their ears cannot hear,
and their hearts cannot understand,
and they cannot turn to me
and let me heal them.’
We cannot hear nor understand what God is speaking when our hearts become hard. Patti went on to share these words that have been ringing in the belfry of my heart ever since she shared –
“The heart of God wants to recapture the hearts of His people”.
YES!
May we let God recapture our hearts.
Soft hearts that see and hear Him.
Our Father's Daughters 