WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.299 Well, keep your Bibles open at Proverbs 16. And 00:00:05.299 --> 00:00:07.679 also, just if you've got your bulletin there, 00:00:07.960 --> 00:00:10.240 on the inside of the bulletin is a phone number. 00:00:10.640 --> 00:00:12.859 We've got Q &A this week, so if you'd like to 00:00:12.859 --> 00:00:16.780 text questions in, we'll have a Q &A time after 00:00:16.780 --> 00:00:19.800 a couple of songs after the sermon. Now, I was 00:00:19.800 --> 00:00:21.800 planning to preach this in the school holidays, 00:00:21.899 --> 00:00:25.219 but it struck me this week as to just how important 00:00:25.219 --> 00:00:28.420 this topic of why is within is. So I thought 00:00:28.420 --> 00:00:31.579 I'd do it now while people aren't away. And we've 00:00:31.579 --> 00:00:34.219 also got a little sheet for your growth group 00:00:34.219 --> 00:00:36.299 if your growth group wants to do that. You might 00:00:36.299 --> 00:00:38.320 want to have a social night or a night of prayer, 00:00:38.380 --> 00:00:41.579 whatever, but there is a study available if you 00:00:41.579 --> 00:00:45.240 want to do that. But let's pray. Let's ask God 00:00:45.240 --> 00:00:49.960 for help as we look at his word now. Gracious 00:00:49.960 --> 00:00:52.219 Heavenly Father, we thank you that you're a speaking 00:00:52.219 --> 00:00:56.079 God and that you speak to us in your word. And 00:00:56.079 --> 00:00:59.420 Father, may Your Word do its work on our hearts 00:00:59.420 --> 00:01:04.099 today. May we love You more. May we become more 00:01:04.099 --> 00:01:08.459 like Jesus. And we ask this in His Name. Amen. 00:01:10.500 --> 00:01:13.739 Well, back in 2024, we were living in Broken 00:01:13.739 --> 00:01:20.000 Hill and a big storm hit the town. It wiped out 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:24.879 seven old transmission towers. So it meant that 00:01:24.879 --> 00:01:27.560 the power went out. But that's okay, because 00:01:27.560 --> 00:01:31.140 they had these big, big diesel generators that 00:01:31.140 --> 00:01:35.040 would power the town. Except they didn't work. 00:01:36.420 --> 00:01:38.359 And so for weeks in Broken Hill, you might have 00:01:38.359 --> 00:01:40.980 seen it in the news, we had rolling blackouts. 00:01:42.060 --> 00:01:44.939 And that's pretty hard in a place that's 17 ,000 00:01:44.939 --> 00:01:48.500 people in literally the middle of nowhere. It 00:01:48.500 --> 00:01:53.480 was a big blind spot for those in charge. Why? 00:01:54.540 --> 00:01:58.359 Because electricity touches so many things in 00:01:58.359 --> 00:02:03.159 our lives, doesn't it? Our fridge wasn't working. 00:02:03.799 --> 00:02:07.019 Our aircon wasn't working. We couldn't charge 00:02:07.019 --> 00:02:08.900 our phones unless we drove around in the car 00:02:08.900 --> 00:02:12.379 for a bit. Our stove happened to be electric. 00:02:12.939 --> 00:02:15.439 Good thing we had a gas barbecue. Our lights 00:02:15.439 --> 00:02:17.719 didn't work. Our TV didn't work. Our washing 00:02:17.719 --> 00:02:21.219 machine didn't work because they all needed electricity. 00:02:22.590 --> 00:02:25.210 And there was a bunch of newspaper articles that 00:02:25.210 --> 00:02:27.530 came out at the time talking about the different 00:02:27.530 --> 00:02:30.930 challenges that people had because of this. There 00:02:30.930 --> 00:02:34.509 was one man in Broken Hill who was on dialysis. 00:02:34.530 --> 00:02:38.270 He had a dialysis machine at home. And he was 00:02:38.270 --> 00:02:40.650 trying to time it. Okay, there's power. I'm going 00:02:40.650 --> 00:02:44.330 to charge my machine. I mean, what a stressful, 00:02:44.430 --> 00:02:48.090 hard thing. There were HSC students who were 00:02:48.090 --> 00:02:49.969 trying to get on the internet and study and do 00:02:49.969 --> 00:02:51.569 all the things they need to do. They didn't have 00:02:51.569 --> 00:02:55.229 any electricity. Café owners who lost a lot of 00:02:55.229 --> 00:02:57.150 business and a lot of stock because there was 00:02:57.150 --> 00:03:00.250 no electricity. Even the traffic lights didn't 00:03:00.250 --> 00:03:05.650 work a lot of the time. It was a big blind spot 00:03:05.650 --> 00:03:09.650 to ignore something that touches so much of our 00:03:09.650 --> 00:03:16.689 lives. But what about us? Do we have a blind 00:03:16.689 --> 00:03:20.370 spot like that? Something that we're ignoring 00:03:20.370 --> 00:03:23.810 that touches so many aspects, maybe even every 00:03:23.810 --> 00:03:28.069 aspect of our lives? Well, today I want to show 00:03:28.069 --> 00:03:31.949 you that I think we do. See, I think there's 00:03:31.949 --> 00:03:33.729 something that touches our relationship with 00:03:33.729 --> 00:03:37.520 God. touches how we relate to our spouse if you 00:03:37.520 --> 00:03:39.719 have one, touches how you parent if you've got 00:03:39.719 --> 00:03:42.719 kids, touches how you work if you go to work, 00:03:42.759 --> 00:03:45.460 touches the friendships that you have, touches 00:03:45.460 --> 00:03:48.259 your body, touches what you buy and purchase, 00:03:48.520 --> 00:03:50.780 touches how you use your phone, touches how you 00:03:50.780 --> 00:03:55.879 turn up to church and treat people. And sadly, 00:03:55.900 --> 00:03:59.979 it's something that we often neglect. What is 00:03:59.979 --> 00:04:06.270 it? It's your heart. sometimes what the Bible 00:04:06.270 --> 00:04:12.990 calls your spirit. It's your inner self. So your 00:04:12.990 --> 00:04:16.730 heart is so important because it shapes, it touches 00:04:16.730 --> 00:04:22.709 all that you do, every aspect of your life. Yet 00:04:22.709 --> 00:04:26.829 it's so easily ignored because it goes unseen 00:04:26.829 --> 00:04:30.790 and life is pretty busy and fast -paced. I've 00:04:30.790 --> 00:04:34.209 got so many things to do. I've got another thing 00:04:34.209 --> 00:04:38.910 to get done. And because it's this important, 00:04:39.069 --> 00:04:43.189 that's why Proverbs tells us this. Above all 00:04:43.189 --> 00:04:48.430 else, guard your heart, for everything you do 00:04:48.430 --> 00:04:54.730 flows from it. The heart is so crucial, that 00:04:54.730 --> 00:05:00.680 inner world we have is so important. What's the 00:05:00.680 --> 00:05:05.199 Bible mean by heart? I love Murray Cappell's 00:05:05.199 --> 00:05:08.180 summary. He puts it like this. He says, it's 00:05:08.180 --> 00:05:11.339 composed of four things essentially. Our conscience, 00:05:11.800 --> 00:05:14.639 so it's to do with our moral compass. It's to 00:05:14.639 --> 00:05:17.660 do with our mind, our thinking and our reasoning. 00:05:18.360 --> 00:05:21.100 It's to do with our decisions, our will and the 00:05:21.100 --> 00:05:24.660 choices we make. And it's to do with our passions, 00:05:25.220 --> 00:05:27.740 our desires, our affections and our emotions 00:05:27.740 --> 00:05:32.240 as well. And so today I want us to look at the 00:05:32.240 --> 00:05:35.399 heart and I want to show you why your heart is 00:05:35.399 --> 00:05:39.379 more important than you might think. I want to 00:05:39.379 --> 00:05:41.339 show you how to guard your heart, how to protect 00:05:41.339 --> 00:05:45.399 it, how to rule over it and manage it. So here's 00:05:45.399 --> 00:05:48.259 the big thing we're going to see today. It's 00:05:48.259 --> 00:05:51.920 just like that verse really. Guard your heart 00:05:51.920 --> 00:05:56.180 because it touches everything you do. If there's 00:05:56.180 --> 00:05:58.720 one thing you remember from today, guard your 00:05:58.720 --> 00:06:03.170 heart because it touches everything you do. And 00:06:03.170 --> 00:06:06.110 here's just some of the key ways that our hearts 00:06:06.110 --> 00:06:10.089 touch everything we do. Our hearts impact our 00:06:10.089 --> 00:06:15.050 choices, our hearts impact our bodies, and our 00:06:15.050 --> 00:06:20.529 hearts impact our bonds, our relationships. So 00:06:20.529 --> 00:06:22.870 let's have a look at the first one. Our hearts 00:06:22.870 --> 00:06:27.339 impact our choices. Have a look at this great 00:06:27.339 --> 00:06:32.220 verse from Proverbs 16 32. Whoever's slow to 00:06:32.220 --> 00:06:37.399 anger is better than the mighty. And he who rules 00:06:37.399 --> 00:06:41.959 his spirit, that internal world, then he who 00:06:41.959 --> 00:06:45.839 takes a city. So when you read this verse, you're 00:06:45.839 --> 00:06:48.259 meant to think of history's great conquerors 00:06:48.259 --> 00:06:52.519 and warriors. In our day, we might think of people 00:06:52.519 --> 00:06:56.959 like Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan, maybe 00:06:56.959 --> 00:07:01.420 Napoleon, despite his height. If you're not a 00:07:01.420 --> 00:07:03.500 student of history, okay, I can help you out. 00:07:03.540 --> 00:07:08.019 Think Braveheart, think Rambo, or if you're just 00:07:08.019 --> 00:07:10.199 a gym junkie, think of the guy at the gym who's 00:07:10.199 --> 00:07:12.259 got no neck because he's so tank. You know that 00:07:12.259 --> 00:07:17.360 guy? And this is saying, if you can be self -controlled, 00:07:17.480 --> 00:07:20.120 if you can rule your emotions and your inner 00:07:20.120 --> 00:07:22.319 world, and in this context here it's especially 00:07:22.319 --> 00:07:25.970 anger, But if you can rule your inner world, 00:07:26.870 --> 00:07:31.410 you're better off than those other people, than 00:07:31.410 --> 00:07:35.889 the mighty, than the conquerors. Because true 00:07:35.889 --> 00:07:42.430 power is not muscles and success. It's conquering 00:07:42.430 --> 00:07:48.110 yourself. Ruling your internal world is a better 00:07:48.110 --> 00:07:52.420 ambition than almost all others. Because if you 00:07:52.420 --> 00:07:55.720 can rule your internal world, it changes how 00:07:55.720 --> 00:08:00.040 you speak, how you make decisions, how you react 00:08:00.040 --> 00:08:04.319 in tense moments, how you think. It touches all 00:08:04.319 --> 00:08:09.160 that you do. Now, I don't know about you, I find 00:08:09.160 --> 00:08:13.180 this pretty hard. Why do we find it so hard? 00:08:14.560 --> 00:08:18.120 Well, it's because our emotions and not our rational 00:08:18.120 --> 00:08:21.519 mind is usually driving things far more than 00:08:21.519 --> 00:08:25.879 we realise. I mean, we live in a fallen world 00:08:25.879 --> 00:08:28.779 and so our internal world doesn't really work 00:08:28.779 --> 00:08:34.960 as it's meant to. It's a bit like this. A while 00:08:34.960 --> 00:08:38.139 ago, our boys played a little trick on their 00:08:38.139 --> 00:08:41.899 little sister. They were all playing Mario Kart 00:08:41.899 --> 00:08:44.899 together and their little sister came along and 00:08:44.899 --> 00:08:47.200 they wanted to play Mario Kart on the TV with 00:08:47.200 --> 00:08:51.179 them. But they didn't really want her to do that 00:08:51.179 --> 00:08:54.259 because she was very slow at driving and but 00:08:54.259 --> 00:08:55.820 they also didn't want to deal with her having 00:08:55.820 --> 00:08:59.000 a tantrum. So what they did was they handed her 00:08:59.000 --> 00:09:02.639 a controller when it wasn't connected and they 00:09:02.639 --> 00:09:05.759 didn't tell her. So she was there and she's like 00:09:05.759 --> 00:09:10.100 you know driving along when it was actually someone 00:09:10.100 --> 00:09:15.299 else who was driving the whole time. Now that 00:09:15.299 --> 00:09:19.350 happens in our hearts all the time. We think 00:09:19.350 --> 00:09:22.049 our minds, our rational self are in the driver's 00:09:22.049 --> 00:09:29.049 seat. But so often it's our emotions. Our emotions 00:09:29.049 --> 00:09:31.750 so often are calling the shots, but we don't 00:09:31.750 --> 00:09:35.850 see it because our minds rationalise what our 00:09:35.850 --> 00:09:40.370 emotions want. Can you think of times where you 00:09:40.370 --> 00:09:44.450 might do this? You're tired after a long day 00:09:44.450 --> 00:09:47.509 of work. And on the way home, you're like, oh, 00:09:47.570 --> 00:09:49.730 that little light comes on, I need some petrol. 00:09:51.049 --> 00:09:54.330 And you go in to pay for the petrol, and there 00:09:54.330 --> 00:09:58.690 you see it, that row of chocolates. And you go, 00:09:58.730 --> 00:10:01.370 oh, I'm so tired, I've got so much to do at home, 00:10:01.909 --> 00:10:04.370 and I am trying to eat healthy at the moment, 00:10:05.210 --> 00:10:09.750 but I do need a little bit of energy. And so 00:10:09.750 --> 00:10:12.769 you buy a chocolate, just the one, hopefully, 00:10:13.429 --> 00:10:17.629 with the petrol. Now, what was driving you at 00:10:17.629 --> 00:10:23.309 that time? Was that your rational brain? I don't 00:10:23.309 --> 00:10:25.929 actually think so. I think it was probably your 00:10:25.929 --> 00:10:29.289 emotional brain. It was you going, I need those 00:10:29.289 --> 00:10:32.649 chocolates. I need to feel good. And your rational 00:10:32.649 --> 00:10:34.909 brain goes, OK, like a little lawyer, yes, I 00:10:34.909 --> 00:10:37.269 can help. Here are five justifications as to 00:10:37.269 --> 00:10:42.289 why you should do that. Or you might have that 00:10:42.289 --> 00:10:45.990 same fight with wifey. She's, again, giving you 00:10:45.990 --> 00:10:49.730 some non -constructive criticism. And what do 00:10:49.730 --> 00:10:54.110 you do? You snap back. Yeah? Well, do you know 00:10:54.110 --> 00:10:56.389 what you do? You're doing this, this and this. 00:10:57.850 --> 00:10:59.649 And you think to yourself, well, that's perfectly 00:10:59.649 --> 00:11:03.070 reasonable. We're just having a debate, trying 00:11:03.070 --> 00:11:08.750 to work out the logic of the situation. No, if 00:11:08.750 --> 00:11:11.190 that's your emotional brain and your rational 00:11:11.190 --> 00:11:13.509 brain is jumping in saying, yes, here are some 00:11:13.509 --> 00:11:16.809 reasonable excuses. If you were thinking with 00:11:16.809 --> 00:11:18.789 your rational brain, you'd be doing things differently. 00:11:18.870 --> 00:11:21.350 You'd be going, yeah, I don't think escalating 00:11:21.350 --> 00:11:25.950 the situation is the best move right now. Now, 00:11:25.970 --> 00:11:28.450 there's so many scenarios like that, isn't there? 00:11:29.049 --> 00:11:32.009 Where we have things, it feels rational, it feels 00:11:32.009 --> 00:11:34.610 logical, but actually we're just reacting and 00:11:34.610 --> 00:11:37.029 our emotions are driving things. They're not 00:11:37.029 --> 00:11:39.490 giving us signals and information, they're in 00:11:39.490 --> 00:11:45.049 the driver's seat. So how do we change this? 00:11:45.950 --> 00:11:50.210 How do we rule our internal world? Well being 00:11:50.210 --> 00:11:53.889 aware of it is a good start, isn't it? But then 00:11:53.889 --> 00:11:56.450 on top of that we want to start developing skills. 00:11:57.450 --> 00:12:00.110 There's this great free app, it's not a Christian 00:12:00.110 --> 00:12:03.049 one, it's just a secular one, called How We Feel. 00:12:03.529 --> 00:12:06.250 And I found it really helpful for me. There's 00:12:06.250 --> 00:12:10.470 great tools in it for emotional regulation. And 00:12:10.470 --> 00:12:12.730 I think it's important that Christians learn 00:12:12.730 --> 00:12:16.870 those skills of pausing and breathing. There's 00:12:16.870 --> 00:12:19.710 this great one called a body scan, which can 00:12:19.710 --> 00:12:22.009 really help with things like anxiety and other 00:12:22.009 --> 00:12:26.120 emotions. Things like reframing and just trying 00:12:26.120 --> 00:12:29.720 to get a new perspective on things. So those 00:12:29.720 --> 00:12:35.659 are good tools. But even more important is that 00:12:35.659 --> 00:12:40.059 we let Jesus minister to our hearts. That we 00:12:40.059 --> 00:12:43.600 let the truth of the gospel soothe our fears, 00:12:44.620 --> 00:12:50.100 fill us with joy, calm our anger. That's what 00:12:50.100 --> 00:12:52.679 Paul tells us. to do all over the New Testament. 00:12:52.820 --> 00:12:56.200 And here's just one example. He says, and let 00:12:56.200 --> 00:13:00.299 the peace of Christ rule in your hearts to which 00:13:00.299 --> 00:13:03.539 indeed you were called in one body and be thankful. 00:13:05.600 --> 00:13:10.919 We rule our spirits by letting Christ's peace 00:13:10.919 --> 00:13:15.179 rule in our hearts. So that means preaching the 00:13:15.179 --> 00:13:19.779 gospel to yourself. Okay, you know, Hang on, 00:13:19.899 --> 00:13:21.720 what's God done for me? Oh, that's right, he 00:13:21.720 --> 00:13:25.240 sent his son Jesus to bear all the wrath that 00:13:25.240 --> 00:13:27.360 should have been mined for my sin, for all the 00:13:27.360 --> 00:13:29.480 times I've done the wrong thing, all the times 00:13:29.480 --> 00:13:32.980 I've been reactive and not sensible, all the 00:13:32.980 --> 00:13:36.759 times I've done evil and hurt others. Jesus died 00:13:36.759 --> 00:13:41.419 for that. And I now have peace with God. I'm 00:13:41.419 --> 00:13:46.259 right with God. Me and God are like this. It's 00:13:46.259 --> 00:13:48.600 reminding ourselves of those truths of the gospel. 00:13:49.600 --> 00:13:52.960 It's bringing the gospel to bear on our lives. 00:13:53.620 --> 00:13:57.120 It's connecting it to our fears, our worries, 00:13:57.320 --> 00:14:02.379 our identity and our outlook. So that when you 00:14:02.379 --> 00:14:06.500 do get criticised, rather than reacting, you 00:14:06.500 --> 00:14:08.759 step back and you go, hang on, hang on, okay, 00:14:09.519 --> 00:14:12.559 I see that I'm loved by God. I see I'm at peace 00:14:12.559 --> 00:14:15.320 with God. And actually, right now that person 00:14:15.320 --> 00:14:17.779 who's criticising me, well, they might be... 00:14:17.559 --> 00:14:19.080 you know, let's say they're a Christian, you 00:14:19.080 --> 00:14:23.700 go, wow, they're a Christian. We've got far more 00:14:23.700 --> 00:14:27.500 in common than we do that sets us apart. We're 00:14:27.500 --> 00:14:30.100 one in Christ. They're someone that Jesus died 00:14:30.100 --> 00:14:35.139 for. And it changes how you think about them, 00:14:35.399 --> 00:14:38.039 how you see the whole situation, doesn't it? 00:14:40.100 --> 00:14:43.799 So let me ask, will you take the time to work 00:14:43.799 --> 00:14:49.090 on this? It's so, so important. Our hearts touch 00:14:49.090 --> 00:14:54.370 everything we do, especially our choices. But 00:14:54.370 --> 00:14:58.730 our hearts do more than that. They also affect 00:14:58.730 --> 00:15:05.730 our bodies. Our hearts impact our bodies and 00:15:05.730 --> 00:15:09.250 vice versa. Our bodies actually impact our hearts. 00:15:10.370 --> 00:15:11.909 I don't know if you've thought about this, but 00:15:11.909 --> 00:15:15.710 the Bible presents humanity as a psychosomatic 00:15:16.240 --> 00:15:19.960 unity. Not that you're a psycho, but psycho is 00:15:19.960 --> 00:15:24.539 mind and somatic is body. So we're a mind -body 00:15:24.539 --> 00:15:27.039 unity. Each of us is one being with an inner 00:15:27.039 --> 00:15:30.919 self and an outer body. And the two actually 00:15:30.919 --> 00:15:34.759 play off each other. We get one side here in 00:15:34.759 --> 00:15:37.139 Proverbs. It's focusing on one aspect of it. 00:15:37.440 --> 00:15:40.559 But light in a messenger's eyes brings joy to 00:15:40.559 --> 00:15:44.320 the heart. And good news gives health to the 00:15:44.320 --> 00:15:48.639 bones. The bones is the bodily part, isn't it? 00:15:48.879 --> 00:15:51.840 Or a joyful heart is good medicine. It affects 00:15:51.840 --> 00:15:55.039 your whole person. But a crushed spirit dries 00:15:55.039 --> 00:16:01.039 up the bones. So the inner world affects our 00:16:01.039 --> 00:16:05.440 outer body. And if we have a biblical anthropology, 00:16:06.159 --> 00:16:09.200 understanding of how humans work, we should be 00:16:09.200 --> 00:16:14.179 all over this. And yet Christians, and myself 00:16:14.179 --> 00:16:16.940 included, we often ignore this to our peril. 00:16:18.720 --> 00:16:21.360 We get stressed out, we get overwhelmed, we get 00:16:21.360 --> 00:16:24.100 anxious, we get depressed, and our body gives 00:16:24.100 --> 00:16:27.419 us signals that things aren't right within us. 00:16:28.580 --> 00:16:33.039 And what do we do? Stiff up a lip, keep calm 00:16:33.039 --> 00:16:35.059 and carry on, don't we? Without the actual keep 00:16:35.059 --> 00:16:40.220 calm, we just carry on. We ignore them. We don't 00:16:40.220 --> 00:16:42.639 look at ourselves holistically and we actually 00:16:42.639 --> 00:16:47.759 damage ourselves and others as well. For years 00:16:47.759 --> 00:16:51.320 and years and years I had a horrible nasal drip. 00:16:53.059 --> 00:16:56.419 I would wake up in the mornings and, you know, 00:16:56.840 --> 00:17:00.559 I think probably cause PTSD on my kids from all 00:17:00.559 --> 00:17:05.960 the hacking and trying to get it all out in the 00:17:05.960 --> 00:17:09.099 shower. Sorry if that was a bit vivid for you, 00:17:09.220 --> 00:17:11.279 but you know, hope it doesn't haunt you either. 00:17:12.539 --> 00:17:15.680 And I'd go to doctors, I tried all sorts of medication, 00:17:15.960 --> 00:17:18.619 I even got nose surgery, thanks for noticing 00:17:18.619 --> 00:17:23.579 if you like it. But a few years back, I learned 00:17:23.579 --> 00:17:26.859 about processing stress, I learned about emotional 00:17:26.859 --> 00:17:29.599 regulation, I learned a bit more about self care. 00:17:31.099 --> 00:17:33.039 And do you know what happened to my nasal drip? 00:17:34.579 --> 00:17:38.900 It started to go away. It's bizarre. Spent all 00:17:38.900 --> 00:17:40.640 that money on the other things, but you know. 00:17:41.940 --> 00:17:43.960 And sometimes it comes back. It comes back when 00:17:43.960 --> 00:17:47.980 I'm tired or stressed. For years my nervous system 00:17:47.980 --> 00:17:50.599 was chronically activated. It was like a fire 00:17:50.599 --> 00:17:52.559 alarm going all the time. That's what my body 00:17:52.559 --> 00:17:55.039 was living with and that's exhausting. It's bad 00:17:55.039 --> 00:17:58.829 for your health. Now for some people it's headaches, 00:17:59.029 --> 00:18:00.750 for some people it's rashes, for some people 00:18:00.750 --> 00:18:02.930 it's digestion issues, and if you don't deal 00:18:02.930 --> 00:18:05.690 with it, it can lead to some massive issues later 00:18:05.690 --> 00:18:09.789 on in your life as well. Now I'm not here saying 00:18:09.789 --> 00:18:13.529 that every ailment is caused by that sort of 00:18:13.529 --> 00:18:15.789 inner world being out of whack. You know, if 00:18:15.789 --> 00:18:18.109 you break your ankle in a soccer game, you broke 00:18:18.109 --> 00:18:19.970 your ankle in a soccer game not because of your 00:18:19.970 --> 00:18:22.069 inner world but because you maybe went for a 00:18:22.069 --> 00:18:23.450 tackle you shouldn't have or whatever it might 00:18:23.450 --> 00:18:28.039 be. But I do want to say that sometimes our body 00:18:28.039 --> 00:18:31.099 gives us signals that things in our inner world 00:18:31.099 --> 00:18:35.599 aren't right. And it works the other way too. 00:18:36.680 --> 00:18:41.400 Our bodies impact our inner self. So we might 00:18:41.400 --> 00:18:44.440 be on edge, we might be grumpy, we might be anxious 00:18:44.440 --> 00:18:47.900 because we haven't done the things that our bodies 00:18:47.900 --> 00:18:50.940 need and it affects our inner world. You know, 00:18:50.940 --> 00:18:52.480 if we haven't had enough sleep or we haven't 00:18:52.480 --> 00:18:58.720 had enough water or anything like that. I don't 00:18:58.720 --> 00:19:00.220 know if you've thought about it, but you actually 00:19:00.220 --> 00:19:04.660 see this psychosomatic connection in the Gospels, 00:19:04.680 --> 00:19:10.539 in Jesus' final hours. Remember Jesus in Gethsemane? 00:19:11.480 --> 00:19:18.299 He's there sweating drops of blood. Why? Because 00:19:18.299 --> 00:19:21.839 he's feeling the inner anguish. What could be 00:19:21.839 --> 00:19:24.720 worse in the universe than facing the wrath of 00:19:24.720 --> 00:19:29.160 God? Jesus is about to drink the cup of God's 00:19:29.160 --> 00:19:34.259 wrath. And that inner anguish was having a physical 00:19:34.259 --> 00:19:39.200 effect on him. And praise God, Jesus endured 00:19:39.200 --> 00:19:44.640 that to save us from our sins. Hallelujah, what 00:19:44.640 --> 00:19:52.819 a saviour. But how does seeing that, seeing both 00:19:52.819 --> 00:19:55.259 what we saw in Proverbs and seeing Jesus in the 00:19:55.259 --> 00:19:58.319 Gospels, how does that help us live our Christian 00:19:58.319 --> 00:20:03.920 lives better? Well, it actually helps with wise, 00:20:04.099 --> 00:20:08.000 godly living. I love this quote from Don Carson. 00:20:08.220 --> 00:20:11.720 Here's what he says. Sometimes the godliest thing 00:20:11.720 --> 00:20:15.220 you can do in the universe is get a good night's 00:20:15.220 --> 00:20:21.359 sleep. Not pray all night. But sleep? I'm certainly 00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:23.920 not denying that there may be a place for praying 00:20:23.920 --> 00:20:26.559 all night. I'm merely insisting that in the normal 00:20:26.559 --> 00:20:31.059 course of things, spiritual discipline obligates 00:20:31.059 --> 00:20:35.799 you to get the sleep your body needs. Isn't that 00:20:35.799 --> 00:20:40.720 wise? See, Jesus didn't go through Gethsemane 00:20:40.720 --> 00:20:45.019 every night. He picked his moment. Most nights 00:20:45.019 --> 00:20:49.119 he was getting a good night's sleep. But with 00:20:49.119 --> 00:20:51.059 Gethsemane, he could see the cross ahead, he 00:20:51.059 --> 00:20:55.019 could see the trial that was at hand, and he 00:20:55.019 --> 00:20:59.759 prayed to his father. So what I'm trying to say 00:20:59.759 --> 00:21:02.460 is there are times that we need to pick our moment. 00:21:02.460 --> 00:21:07.059 There are times where we push through. But that's 00:21:07.059 --> 00:21:14.640 not the norm. Jesus shows us balance. I mean, 00:21:14.660 --> 00:21:18.960 think about it this way. Being godly is hard 00:21:18.960 --> 00:21:23.119 enough. Don't you reckon? It's hard enough to 00:21:23.119 --> 00:21:28.720 just be godly. So much harder if we're tired, 00:21:29.200 --> 00:21:33.519 stressed, our bodies are run down. Why would 00:21:33.519 --> 00:21:39.119 we make it harder on ourselves? But not only 00:21:39.119 --> 00:21:42.440 that, what's going on in our bodies alerts us 00:21:42.440 --> 00:21:44.700 to our hearts. It's easy to ignore our inner 00:21:44.700 --> 00:21:49.099 world and just push through. But when our body 00:21:49.099 --> 00:21:54.279 is flaking, that's a signal that maybe our hearts 00:21:54.279 --> 00:21:58.660 might not be in a good place. Maybe it's time 00:21:58.660 --> 00:22:01.680 to stop and sort out our stress, our anxiety, 00:22:01.900 --> 00:22:04.039 our insecurities, whatever's going on within. 00:22:07.359 --> 00:22:10.900 Is your body telling you something? Is it telling 00:22:10.900 --> 00:22:12.640 you that something's going on in your heart? 00:22:14.500 --> 00:22:17.900 Are you using your body to guard your heart? 00:22:19.939 --> 00:22:22.480 Do you know, sometimes people come to me as a 00:22:22.480 --> 00:22:27.319 passer and they've got big challenges. Sometimes 00:22:27.319 --> 00:22:29.680 they say, hey, Brandon, I'm feeling really disillusioned 00:22:29.680 --> 00:22:34.180 with God right now. And I'll check the issue. 00:22:34.420 --> 00:22:36.119 I'll listen, hey, tell me what's going on in 00:22:36.119 --> 00:22:40.299 your life that's making you feel that way. But 00:22:40.299 --> 00:22:42.299 one of the things I'll also do is say to them, 00:22:42.460 --> 00:22:45.910 hey, tell me, how's your sleep going? Are you 00:22:45.910 --> 00:22:48.470 getting enough water? Are you eating okay? Are 00:22:48.470 --> 00:22:52.150 you getting enough exercise? These are all things 00:22:52.150 --> 00:22:54.970 that contribute to what's going on within us. 00:22:56.670 --> 00:22:58.829 I know it's affected me. It's something I'm always 00:22:58.829 --> 00:23:01.490 trying to work on and get better at because I 00:23:01.490 --> 00:23:07.809 know the impact these things can have. But that's 00:23:07.809 --> 00:23:13.049 not all. Our hearts not only impact our choices, 00:23:13.049 --> 00:23:16.309 they not only impact our bodies, but they also 00:23:16.309 --> 00:23:21.430 impact our bonds, our relationships with others. 00:23:24.069 --> 00:23:26.390 I've been parenting five neurodivergent kids 00:23:26.390 --> 00:23:30.150 for a little while now. Do you know the best 00:23:30.150 --> 00:23:35.470 bang for buck lesson that I've learnt? Parenting's 00:23:35.470 --> 00:23:39.410 not so much about managing them, it's more about 00:23:39.410 --> 00:23:45.630 managing myself. My internal world sets the tone. 00:23:46.970 --> 00:23:50.970 I can be a thermostat where I can kind of control 00:23:50.970 --> 00:23:54.150 the temperature of things or I can be a thermometer. 00:23:54.470 --> 00:23:57.789 I just reflect the temperature of things and 00:23:57.789 --> 00:24:01.349 usually make things worse. Have a look at this 00:24:01.349 --> 00:24:06.549 verse. Discipline your son for there is hope. 00:24:07.490 --> 00:24:11.049 Do not set your heart on putting him to death. 00:24:12.589 --> 00:24:17.029 Now, did you notice that? It's his internal world, 00:24:17.089 --> 00:24:21.109 the father's internal world here, that's the 00:24:21.109 --> 00:24:26.829 focus. If your heart feels hopeless, if this 00:24:26.829 --> 00:24:29.750 father goes, oh, there's just no point disciplining 00:24:29.750 --> 00:24:33.069 this kid. Everything I tried just backfires. 00:24:33.109 --> 00:24:38.390 It doesn't work. I'm giving up. Well, then he's 00:24:38.390 --> 00:24:41.089 setting his heart on putting him to death. That 00:24:41.089 --> 00:24:44.029 is, This kid's going to grow up to be foolish 00:24:44.029 --> 00:24:49.730 and end up in a place of calamity. There's a 00:24:49.730 --> 00:24:53.210 different way. He needs to manage what's going 00:24:53.210 --> 00:24:55.430 on within him. The dad needs to manage what's 00:24:55.430 --> 00:24:59.569 going on within him. Starts with himself. Okay, 00:25:00.190 --> 00:25:02.690 I'm not going to feel hopeless about this situation. 00:25:03.609 --> 00:25:05.910 I'm going to see that there is things I can do 00:25:05.910 --> 00:25:08.230 that there is a way for. Even if I have to start 00:25:08.230 --> 00:25:10.549 small, I'm going to start small. I'm going to 00:25:10.549 --> 00:25:18.009 do something. Changing his own outlook changes 00:25:18.009 --> 00:25:22.910 the dynamic. And I reckon that's the same with 00:25:22.910 --> 00:25:27.349 all healthy relationships. Self -management is 00:25:27.349 --> 00:25:32.849 the key. Drill this into your head. This is one 00:25:32.849 --> 00:25:35.230 I've tried to drill into my head. It's helped 00:25:35.230 --> 00:25:40.130 me so much. You can't change others, but you 00:25:40.130 --> 00:25:43.740 can change yourself. You can't change others 00:25:43.740 --> 00:25:46.359 but you can change yourself. Actually, when I've 00:25:46.359 --> 00:25:49.619 tried to change others it usually backfires. 00:25:51.640 --> 00:25:55.099 Marriages improve when each partner cleans up 00:25:55.099 --> 00:25:58.980 their side of the street. Workplaces improve 00:25:58.980 --> 00:26:02.460 when we focus on what we're bringing to the table. 00:26:04.240 --> 00:26:08.480 Relationships crumble when we blame, blame, blame, 00:26:08.480 --> 00:26:13.299 blame and never work on our own hearts. Now, 00:26:13.299 --> 00:26:16.339 I know there are exceptions. I know there's some 00:26:16.339 --> 00:26:19.180 times where you're dealing with a narcissistic 00:26:19.180 --> 00:26:23.160 somebody or whatever it might be. There are exceptions 00:26:23.160 --> 00:26:26.759 that prove the rule, aren't there? But the norm 00:26:26.759 --> 00:26:31.920 is we've got to work on ourselves. And if you're 00:26:31.920 --> 00:26:35.400 here today and you're thinking, yes, I'm really 00:26:35.400 --> 00:26:39.119 glad that they're here to hear this, no, you 00:26:39.119 --> 00:26:44.059 do too. We need to be asking, what am I bringing 00:26:44.059 --> 00:26:49.480 to the table? Maybe you're adding extra meaning 00:26:49.480 --> 00:26:53.779 to things that isn't there or catastrophising 00:26:53.779 --> 00:26:56.240 things. Maybe you're mind reading, maybe you're 00:26:56.240 --> 00:26:57.859 going, I know what they're thinking and they 00:26:57.859 --> 00:27:00.859 haven't said anything. I remember there was a 00:27:00.859 --> 00:27:04.079 lady at a church I worked at, she left our church. 00:27:04.079 --> 00:27:06.980 It was really sad. Why did she leave our church? 00:27:07.980 --> 00:27:10.779 Because there was another lady in church who 00:27:10.779 --> 00:27:15.359 looked at her. And this lady said, oh, she looked 00:27:15.359 --> 00:27:19.440 at me funny. She doesn't like me. I'm not welcome 00:27:19.440 --> 00:27:23.779 here. And so she left our church. And sadly, 00:27:23.839 --> 00:27:25.660 I only found all these things out years later. 00:27:25.779 --> 00:27:29.240 I was like, really? That's why I can tell you. 00:27:30.140 --> 00:27:34.259 Adding meaning to things. Or it's possible that 00:27:34.259 --> 00:27:37.359 in our relationships, Past hurts or traumas can 00:27:37.359 --> 00:27:41.119 amplify present hurts and traumas. You know, 00:27:41.299 --> 00:27:42.960 someone does something to you that's level 3 00:27:42.960 --> 00:27:45.960 and it's serious and it's a thing, but it's not 00:27:45.960 --> 00:27:48.799 a level 8. And you're perceiving it as a level 00:27:48.799 --> 00:27:51.460 8. That can happen. It might not be, I'm just 00:27:51.460 --> 00:27:55.339 saying. It's a possibility. Maybe in your relationships 00:27:55.339 --> 00:27:58.140 you bury your head in the sand. When things get 00:27:58.140 --> 00:27:59.859 hard, when things are difficult, maybe you get 00:27:59.859 --> 00:28:02.640 defensive, maybe you're overly controlling. We 00:28:02.640 --> 00:28:05.619 all have different stuff that we bring to the 00:28:05.619 --> 00:28:10.319 table. But we've got to ask, what am I bringing 00:28:10.319 --> 00:28:13.960 to the table? And one of the beauties of the 00:28:13.960 --> 00:28:17.019 Gospel of God's grace is that it allows us to 00:28:17.019 --> 00:28:20.980 face the dark parts of ourselves, know that we're 00:28:20.980 --> 00:28:25.059 loved, know that we're forgiven, and then change. 00:28:28.299 --> 00:28:30.720 But it's not just human relationships that our 00:28:30.720 --> 00:28:35.000 hearts impact. Our hearts were made to love and 00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:39.440 enjoy God above all else. Yet all sorts of things 00:28:39.440 --> 00:28:43.299 can derail our hearts from loving God too. Have 00:28:43.299 --> 00:28:47.400 a look at this verse. Blessed is the one who 00:28:47.400 --> 00:28:52.059 fears the Lord always, but whoever hardens his 00:28:52.059 --> 00:28:58.500 heart will fall into calamity. You're doing the 00:28:58.500 --> 00:29:00.680 dishes. The dishwasher's broken or maybe there's 00:29:00.680 --> 00:29:02.380 a power outage and you've got no electricity. 00:29:02.539 --> 00:29:05.559 Been there, done that. You're doing the dishes 00:29:05.559 --> 00:29:08.359 in the sink and you've got your sponge there 00:29:08.359 --> 00:29:12.039 and you've got a plate there. What's the sponge 00:29:12.039 --> 00:29:15.980 do? It absorbs things, doesn't it? It absorbs 00:29:15.980 --> 00:29:19.559 the water. But the plate, it absorbs nothing. 00:29:20.700 --> 00:29:25.140 Things just wash over it, don't they? Well now, 00:29:25.140 --> 00:29:26.740 I want you to think this every time you're doing 00:29:26.740 --> 00:29:32.099 the dishes in the sink. Is your heart like a 00:29:32.099 --> 00:29:37.000 sponge or like that plate of stone? Which one 00:29:37.000 --> 00:29:41.039 isn't? Because that's something we've got to 00:29:41.039 --> 00:29:44.259 keep guard on with our hearts. Our hearts can 00:29:44.259 --> 00:29:46.720 easily become hearts of stone. They can get hardened 00:29:46.720 --> 00:29:50.640 with God's Word just washes over them and it 00:29:50.640 --> 00:29:53.700 stops absorbing God's Word and taking it in. 00:29:54.840 --> 00:29:58.279 When God's Word stops impacting our hearts, that's 00:29:58.279 --> 00:30:01.960 a big red flag that we're in spiritual danger. 00:30:04.420 --> 00:30:07.200 Or perhaps the danger comes from pain in your 00:30:07.200 --> 00:30:20.019 life. Have a look at this verse. Yesterday one 00:30:20.019 --> 00:30:22.119 of my kids broke something that belonged to one 00:30:22.119 --> 00:30:26.099 of my other kids. There were consequences for 00:30:26.099 --> 00:30:31.519 doing that. And our kid chose to be really angry 00:30:31.519 --> 00:30:38.619 at me as the dealer of consequences. It's very 00:30:38.619 --> 00:30:43.420 easy to be angry at God, isn't it? It's a bit 00:30:43.420 --> 00:30:47.160 like us. It's easy to blame God when we've done 00:30:47.160 --> 00:30:49.279 something wrong in our life, when our life has 00:30:49.279 --> 00:30:51.680 gone into ruin because of choices we've made. 00:30:51.700 --> 00:30:53.599 And it doesn't always happen because of choices 00:30:53.599 --> 00:30:58.480 we've made. Sometimes it's just accidental. Sometimes 00:30:58.480 --> 00:31:01.640 it's not our fault. But there are times where 00:31:01.640 --> 00:31:05.720 our folly leads us to ruin. And it's so easy 00:31:05.720 --> 00:31:09.759 to wash our hands of it. Lord, I prayed to you 00:31:09.759 --> 00:31:16.259 about that. You didn't do anything about it rather 00:31:16.259 --> 00:31:18.900 than looking at, well, what did I bring to the 00:31:18.900 --> 00:31:23.980 table there? Have I repented of that? Have I 00:31:23.980 --> 00:31:29.759 owned my folly and failures here? Often our heart 00:31:29.759 --> 00:31:33.160 rages against God because we can't face our own 00:31:33.160 --> 00:31:39.799 folly. See, both that anger and heart -heartedness 00:31:39.799 --> 00:31:44.000 is easy to slip into if we don't guard our hearts. 00:31:46.180 --> 00:31:51.180 So, how do you guard your heart? Keep marvelling 00:31:51.180 --> 00:31:55.680 at Christ's beauty. When you read the Word, don't 00:31:55.680 --> 00:31:57.920 just go, tick, I've read the Word, go, I've got 00:31:57.920 --> 00:32:00.900 a job to do here. I'm going to see how glorious 00:32:00.900 --> 00:32:04.420 Jesus is today. That's why we crack open the 00:32:04.420 --> 00:32:11.319 Bible. Confess your sins to God. Own them. Come 00:32:11.319 --> 00:32:14.539 to Him. Ask for forgiveness. Keeps your heart 00:32:14.539 --> 00:32:19.380 soft. Constantly thank God. Count your blessings. 00:32:19.500 --> 00:32:23.579 Literally count them. Heed God's wisdom in His 00:32:23.579 --> 00:32:26.019 Word so that you've got less folly in your life. 00:32:27.740 --> 00:32:32.720 Doing those things keeps your heart safe. Are 00:32:32.720 --> 00:32:38.900 you guarding it like that? Alright, let's wrap 00:32:38.900 --> 00:32:43.460 up. We've seen today that our hearts are so important. 00:32:44.640 --> 00:32:47.799 Our hearts impact our choices, our hearts impact 00:32:47.799 --> 00:32:50.759 our bodies, and our hearts impact our bonds, 00:32:51.000 --> 00:32:56.559 our relationships. You know, Jesus died not just 00:32:56.559 --> 00:32:59.220 to forgive you of your sins, as crucial and as 00:32:59.220 --> 00:33:02.329 important as that is. And He died not just to 00:33:02.329 --> 00:33:04.390 save you from hell, He died not just to give 00:33:04.390 --> 00:33:08.650 you eternal life, He also died to give you a 00:33:08.650 --> 00:33:13.390 new heart. He died so that your old self would 00:33:13.390 --> 00:33:16.589 be crucified with Him, that your sinful nature, 00:33:16.950 --> 00:33:20.250 that nature within you that seeks self -preservation 00:33:20.250 --> 00:33:23.670 at any cost, that nature within you that follows 00:33:23.670 --> 00:33:26.769 desires no matter how unloving they are, that 00:33:26.769 --> 00:33:28.990 nature within you that says, I know better than 00:33:28.990 --> 00:33:33.680 God. He died so that that nature would lose its 00:33:33.680 --> 00:33:38.740 power over you. He died so that he could send 00:33:38.740 --> 00:33:42.039 his spirit, so that his spirit would transform 00:33:42.039 --> 00:33:44.880 and renovate your inner world. He died so that 00:33:44.880 --> 00:33:47.579 you'd see the world differently, have a new security, 00:33:47.779 --> 00:33:53.720 a new identity, a new outlook. If you're not 00:33:53.720 --> 00:34:00.599 yet a Christian, this is all on offer. This wonderful 00:34:00.599 --> 00:34:05.960 new inner world is available to you. If you're 00:34:05.960 --> 00:34:08.159 there and you've got questions or you want to 00:34:08.159 --> 00:34:10.420 talk about it, you want to have that for yourself, 00:34:10.699 --> 00:34:13.059 come chat with me after I'd love to talk to you 00:34:13.059 --> 00:34:19.139 about it. But if you're a Christian, I hope you'll 00:34:19.139 --> 00:34:24.059 respond today by doing this. Guard your heart. 00:34:25.320 --> 00:34:28.250 Guard your heart because it touches everything 00:34:28.250 --> 00:34:34.429 you do. Shoring up that power supply in Broken 00:34:34.429 --> 00:34:40.289 Hill was crucial because it touched so many things 00:34:40.289 --> 00:34:45.349 in people's lives. But your heart touches even 00:34:45.349 --> 00:34:50.110 more things in more important ways. So to neglect 00:34:50.110 --> 00:34:53.530 it or ignore it, that would be a huge blind spot. 00:34:55.510 --> 00:35:00.690 But we do, don't we? Some of us here, we're tired 00:35:00.690 --> 00:35:03.389 and busy. And so you might be sitting here and 00:35:03.389 --> 00:35:05.869 you're thinking, okay, Brendan, you're just adding 00:35:05.869 --> 00:35:11.210 another thing on my plate. But nothing is more 00:35:11.210 --> 00:35:15.829 pressing and urgent than this. Our hearts bleed 00:35:15.829 --> 00:35:20.550 into everything we do. For some of us, we're 00:35:20.550 --> 00:35:24.219 activists. We're so consumed with taking care 00:35:24.219 --> 00:35:26.980 of others because it feels good when we do or 00:35:26.980 --> 00:35:31.420 because we feel safe when we do. But what we 00:35:31.420 --> 00:35:34.980 really need to do is sort out our own hearts. 00:35:36.440 --> 00:35:39.000 It's like when you're in the plane and the oxygen 00:35:39.000 --> 00:35:40.820 masks come down, hope that hasn't happened to 00:35:40.820 --> 00:35:42.699 you, but when they do, because of the turbulence, 00:35:43.039 --> 00:35:46.920 what do they say? Put on your own mask before 00:35:46.920 --> 00:35:51.159 you assist others. There's some of us here who 00:35:51.159 --> 00:35:54.059 need to get some gospel oxygen into our hearts 00:35:54.059 --> 00:36:00.239 before we assist anyone else. For some of us 00:36:00.239 --> 00:36:02.260 here, our problem is we have that stiff upper 00:36:02.260 --> 00:36:06.019 lip syndrome. Our motto is don't cause a fuss, 00:36:07.139 --> 00:36:11.639 just push through. Now our hearts are important 00:36:11.639 --> 00:36:15.139 enough that we need to stop and work through 00:36:15.139 --> 00:36:20.909 things deeply. For years I thought I was doing 00:36:20.909 --> 00:36:24.909 pretty good hard work on myself. Do you know 00:36:24.909 --> 00:36:29.090 what? Turns out it was pretty shallow. And a 00:36:29.090 --> 00:36:33.349 few years ago it caught up with me. My relationship 00:36:33.349 --> 00:36:36.789 with God was pretty sour. My marriage could have 00:36:36.789 --> 00:36:40.130 been better. My relationship with my kids was 00:36:40.130 --> 00:36:44.769 tough. And I was full of insecurity, stress and 00:36:44.769 --> 00:36:49.090 anxiety. I made choices not from a place of calm, 00:36:49.110 --> 00:36:53.429 but from fear. I had no boundaries. I had no 00:36:53.429 --> 00:36:55.769 real wisdom about how to take care of myself. 00:36:55.809 --> 00:36:59.610 I was run down. My body was falling apart. I 00:36:59.610 --> 00:37:01.630 ignored the signals because, hey, I've just got 00:37:01.630 --> 00:37:05.289 so much to get done. And then it was easy to 00:37:05.289 --> 00:37:08.829 blame everyone else and sometimes even God, rather 00:37:08.829 --> 00:37:13.510 than ignore my part in it all. I was living as 00:37:13.510 --> 00:37:18.320 a human doing, not as a human being. And then 00:37:18.320 --> 00:37:20.119 some things went wrong, some health things in 00:37:20.119 --> 00:37:23.699 our family, some stresses at church, and I just 00:37:23.699 --> 00:37:30.159 realised things needed to change. And I'm so 00:37:30.159 --> 00:37:33.699 glad that they did. It's something I see that 00:37:33.699 --> 00:37:38.119 I need to keep working on all the time now. But 00:37:38.119 --> 00:37:41.460 let me encourage you, don't make the same mistakes 00:37:41.460 --> 00:37:47.800 that I did. Search your heart now. Drill the 00:37:47.800 --> 00:37:52.900 Gospel deeply into it. You could start with just 00:37:52.900 --> 00:37:56.679 one hour a week. Write down what's going on in 00:37:56.679 --> 00:37:59.659 you and try and bring the Gospel to bear on it. 00:38:00.920 --> 00:38:02.679 And if you want help with that, come talk to 00:38:02.679 --> 00:38:05.380 me. I've got ideas, books, resources I can help 00:38:05.380 --> 00:38:09.340 you with. But please don't walk out that door 00:38:09.340 --> 00:38:16.630 today and ignore this. Actually, let me close 00:38:16.630 --> 00:38:21.050 with this. Think how good life would be if all 00:38:21.050 --> 00:38:25.550 of us took our hearts more seriously. Just picture 00:38:25.550 --> 00:38:30.050 it. You'd have this deep joy and satisfaction 00:38:30.050 --> 00:38:34.469 in God that spills into everything. If you're 00:38:34.469 --> 00:38:36.409 there feeling disillusioned and distant with 00:38:36.409 --> 00:38:39.090 God, you'd go and talk about it and reflect on 00:38:39.090 --> 00:38:41.849 it and work on it and then the delight again 00:38:41.849 --> 00:38:47.269 in God starts to come back. Our marriages would 00:38:47.269 --> 00:38:51.889 be richer and closer. Parents and kids would 00:38:51.889 --> 00:38:55.769 have a deeper bond with one another. As a church, 00:38:55.869 --> 00:38:59.309 we'd be better at caring for one another. We'd 00:38:59.309 --> 00:39:03.590 be more harmonious. We'd all be making wiser 00:39:03.590 --> 00:39:05.809 and better choices, becoming our best selves, 00:39:05.929 --> 00:39:08.429 becoming more like Christ. And think about the 00:39:08.429 --> 00:39:11.090 witness that would have. Wow, those Christians, 00:39:11.269 --> 00:39:15.829 they're onto something, aren't they? But that 00:39:15.829 --> 00:39:20.309 only can happen if we do that work on our hearts. 00:39:22.469 --> 00:39:32.230 Let's not neglect it. Let's pray. Father, help 00:39:32.230 --> 00:39:36.809 us to guard our hearts. Help us to see how crucial 00:39:36.809 --> 00:39:41.230 and important they are. Please, Father, let us 00:39:41.230 --> 00:39:45.920 not ignore or neglect this. Help us to take to 00:39:45.920 --> 00:39:50.559 heart how important our hearts are. And we ask 00:39:50.559 --> 00:39:52.860 this in Jesus' name. Amen.