The
Heart of the Matter
By Jeannine Sawall
“The LORD does not
look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but
the LORD looks at the heart."
1
Samuel 16:7b (NIV)
The
morning after an intense storm swept through our area, I was driving to work
and noticed a large tree lying in the middle of the road. The tree was huge and
clearly old, yet the storm had caused one of the main branch arteries to break
off and block oncoming traffic. What I noticed was the inside of the tree: the
entire interior of the tree had been rotting. Its core was completely decayed because
of the rot and so it had not been able to withstand the winds of the storm.
From
the outside, the tree looked perfectly healthy and solid. It had green leaves
on it. It was tall and burley and looked like it could have handled any storm…a
mighty oak. Yet on the inside, there was a huge void where the core of the tree
had crumbled away leaving it weak and vulnerable to the heavy winds. Because of
its weakness, the shelter and shade it had provided for untold wildlife was now
gone.
As
I drove by this tree, it challenged me to consider my spiritual walk. I know
how to look like a solid Christian on the outside. I know the right words and
phrases to say. I know my Bible pretty well and can recite appropriate verses
at appropriate times. I attend the required church events and from the outside
I can look like I have it pretty much spiritually all together. However, the
Lord considers my “inside actions” - - the actions and thoughts of my heart more
than the actions and words I do and say. Unless there is the consistency on the
inside to match the outside, all I am doing is putting on a farce while my
inside crumbles away.
As
Christians, we need to have our insides match our outsides. Not only because
God sees our intentions and hears our thoughts and anything outside His line of
godliness grieves Him, but because when we do not have spiritual heart health,
any storm that comes our way can shatter us. We need to have a spiritual
healthiness that goes to our core so we can offer shelter to those around us
when needed, as well as remain strong in our faith when storms come our way. It
really comes down to the fact that it’s the heart of the matter that matters
most!
GOING
DEEPER:
1. How healthy is your spiritual walk? Do the
thoughts of your heart match the words of your mouth?
2. Who is God asking you to provide spiritual
shelter or shade for?
FURTHER
READING:
Jeannine is a wife
and busy mother of four boys. She works in property management, serves in Café and
actively ministers to those walking through grief.
