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Thursday was Valentine’s Day. Fifty- eight years ago Valentine’s Day changed my life. In January I had just enrolled at a college in South Dakota, which had the tradition of “Reverse Dating” for the Annual Valentine’s Party. Donna, a sweet gal with a big heart, felt sorry for the newcomer, so she asked him to be her date for the Party. The rest is history! About a year later we were married. The Lord has blessed us with three great children and eight wonderful grandchildren who all love Him.
What does Valentine’s Day have to do with today’s PROMISE FROM GOD? Really nothing - other than that they both deal with hearts. One is a heart with an arrow through it, symbolizing sentimental feelings for a person who is special to us. The other is more crucial to our life than the physical heart which pumps blood through our veins. If our physical heart begins to fail - the problem can possibly be solved, with a heart transplant – a heart from a donor who just died. However, the heart which today’s PROMISE makes reference to, is our spiritual heart. Only God can do spiritual heart transplants. He can do them because His sinless Son Jesus died for our sin and rose again.
Before we were born again our spiritual heart was dead - hard and unresponsive to God. The Scripture refers to it as being “stony and stubborn.” We ignored God and lived as we pleased. We were set in our ways and as far as we were concerned even God wasn’t going to change us.
But then God in His sovereign and gracious way arranged circumstances in our lives, which woke us up to the fact that we needed help. As we began to realize that truth and called out to Him for help and forgiveness, it began to happen! Our cold heart began to warm up and become tender and pliable. God was doing a spiritual heart transplant!! We had received a New Heart and a New Spirit – His Holy Spirit!
Remember what an exciting time that was? We couldn’t get enough of His Word – we talked about Jesus with everyone we met – we wanted to please God with everything we did. Spiritual energy and the joy of the Lord filled our lives!
But if we are honest, we have to admit, we haven’t always lived the way we did when we first got our New Heart and a New Spirit. We have had seasons when our heart became calloused and unresponsive to God. We have had times when in stubbornness we went our own way. Serving the Lord became a chore and the Joy of the Lord had all but dried up. In fact that may be the place where we find ourselves today. If that is the case, we need to repent and give ourselves afresh to the Lord. He promises "I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart."
Lets Pray –
Father, “Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.
What does Valentine’s Day have to do with today’s PROMISE FROM GOD? Really nothing - other than that they both deal with hearts. One is a heart with an arrow through it, symbolizing sentimental feelings for a person who is special to us. The other is more crucial to our life than the physical heart which pumps blood through our veins. If our physical heart begins to fail - the problem can possibly be solved, with a heart transplant – a heart from a donor who just died. However, the heart which today’s PROMISE makes reference to, is our spiritual heart. Only God can do spiritual heart transplants. He can do them because His sinless Son Jesus died for our sin and rose again.
Before we were born again our spiritual heart was dead - hard and unresponsive to God. The Scripture refers to it as being “stony and stubborn.” We ignored God and lived as we pleased. We were set in our ways and as far as we were concerned even God wasn’t going to change us.
But then God in His sovereign and gracious way arranged circumstances in our lives, which woke us up to the fact that we needed help. As we began to realize that truth and called out to Him for help and forgiveness, it began to happen! Our cold heart began to warm up and become tender and pliable. God was doing a spiritual heart transplant!! We had received a New Heart and a New Spirit – His Holy Spirit!
Remember what an exciting time that was? We couldn’t get enough of His Word – we talked about Jesus with everyone we met – we wanted to please God with everything we did. Spiritual energy and the joy of the Lord filled our lives!
But if we are honest, we have to admit, we haven’t always lived the way we did when we first got our New Heart and a New Spirit. We have had seasons when our heart became calloused and unresponsive to God. We have had times when in stubbornness we went our own way. Serving the Lord became a chore and the Joy of the Lord had all but dried up. In fact that may be the place where we find ourselves today. If that is the case, we need to repent and give ourselves afresh to the Lord. He promises "I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart."
Lets Pray –
Father, “Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.” (a)
"Change my heart oh God Make it ever true
Change my heart oh God May I be like You
You are the potter I am the clay
Mold me and make me this is what I pray
Change my heart oh God Make it ever true
Change my heart oh God May I be like You."(b)
Amen
Amen
Footnotes:
(a)Psalm 51:9-11 NLT, (b)Arul John
If today’s promise and comments have been meaningful to you – don’t hesitate to leave a comment. (Single space gives best appearance.)
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