Proverbs 4:23 (ESV) is a very profound and plainly written piece of wisdom and instruction. In this verse, God tells us, “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” The direction that our Heavenly Father is giving us can never be underestimated. He makes the connection between what is in our hearts and what springs forth in our lives. This is a gem we don’t want to miss. The decisions we make in life will impact everything we do as well as the quality of our existences. This is particularly important when it comes to our desire for a significant relationship. Many of us have carried things in our hearts like resentment, bitterness, jealousy, envy, vengeance, and obsession, and that’s just a few that we’ve retained after the breakup of our last relationship. So, it behooves us to spend some quality time with the Lord. We need to pray that He will reveal to us the aspects of love’s nature that we need to put on, and the dark, heavy stuff that we absolutely must take off.
God instructs us to guard our heart because, again, the heart impacts the quality of our lives. The issues of life flow from it. Whether we are conscious of it or not, Proverbs 4:23 conveys that we are constantly broadcasting to our external environment whatever is in our hearts. We’re either attracting or repelling certain people and certain situations based on either the good treasury of our hearts or the bad treasury of our hearts. Jesus Christ said in Luke 6:45(NLT), “A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.” Again, everything we do flows from the heart, and this is why others can discern a lot about who we truly are simply by what we do and how we behave.
When we as women set our sights on someone who might be a potential spouse or boyfriend, we focus on them, sometimes with great intensity. We continually pour our energy and effort into this person, and because of our huge emotional investment, we literally join ourselves to this man. We never consider that connecting to the wrong person can really mess us up. We become attached without discernment and this is never wise.
In our past relationships, many of us gave our all. We behaved with that man as if he were already our husband, but then things didn’t work out. This is costly for us. Jesus Christ warns us in Luke 14:28(NLT) that it is very unwise to try to build something without good judgment and the right mind-and-heart-set. He said, “But don’t begin until you count the cost.” This wisdom can be applied across the board. A wise person never attempts to build something valuable, long-lasting, and useful without knowing exactly what they are working with.
It’s true that there are things we don’t realize about ourselves until we go through certain hiccups in life, but heartbreak from a relationship with the wrong man is a hiccup we can avoid. Ecclesiastes 8:5-6(ESV) tells us, “5 Those who obey him will not be punished. Those who are wise will find a time and a way to do what is right, 6 for there is a time and a way for everything, even when a person is in trouble.” This is golden. It encourages us to take a look at what is really going on in our hearts and bring them into alignment with the Word and wisdom of God. There’s no punishment in obeying God’s Word. Those who love Him will not throw themselves into relationships without seeking God first. They will find a way to do what is right because they want to please our Heavenly Father.
Ecclesiastes 10:2(ESV) says, “A wise man’s heart inclines him to the right, but a fool’s heart to the left.” We must set our hearts to the right and not allow them to go left. As we understand the mistakes of our past, we must be accountable for the things we allowed to rule our hearts instead of allowing God’s Word to rule them. He wants to look at our hearts and see our commitment and love for Him, because our love for Him is the solid foundation on which all the other blessings are laid. From this day forward, make the commitment to God to keep your heart filled with the goodness and wisdom of His Word, so that His goodness and wisdom will be the springs of your life. ■
English Standard Version (ESV), The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“The Springs of Life”, written by Kim Times, edited by Fran Mack for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!