“Everything we experience is processed through our hearts, the good and the bad. Life comes at us from all directions, but it all gets channeled through our hearts.”- Andy Stanley
In Chapter 4 (“Heart Damage”) of Enemies of the Heart, Andy Stanley observes that all the good and bad of life gets channeled through our hearts. Unfortunately, Pastor Stanley states, our negative experiences tend to lodge there. As a result, at some point in time they make their way out via our words and deeds.
However, due to the delay between entry and exit, we usually find it difficult to make the connection. Thus, we’re mad but we don’t know why. We resent certain people even though they’ve done absolutely nothing to warrant our response. And, left unchecked, our responses potentially drive us to self-destruction or wreck our relationships. Pastor Stanley explains:
“The heart seeps into every conversation. It dictates every relationship. Our lives emanate from the heart. . . . Our hearts have the potential to exaggerate our sensitivities and insensitivities. Every arena of life intersects with what’s going on in our hearts. Everything passes through on its way to wherever it’s going. Everything.”
Therefore, it’s critical that we monitor our hearts. And that would be true even life consisted of a level playing field. But life isn’t a level playing field. Everyone experiences some measure of hurt and rejection. Then, those hurts lodge in our hearts. As a result, people may describe us as hardhearted, building walls around our hearts, displaying trust issues, or akin to hugging an ice cube.
In conclusion, Pastor Stanley notes, people inflicted our earliest wounds during childhood. Because of our young age, we found it hard to accurately process exactly how we felt. So, we employed coping mechanisms to stop our pain. Also, once we stopped the pain, we then tried to keep it from ever happening again.
Today’s question: What Bible verses help you cope with the life events channeled through your heart? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Dings to the heart – our response”