Tuesday, May 05, 2015

Maintain Your Heart

“Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion, as in the day of trial in the wilderness.” — Psalm 95:8 (NKJV)

I fell hard on the ground as I snagged my jeans climbing over the fence. A splinter ripped them and gashed my leg at the same time. The gate didn’t work. The hinges and lock appeared ancient because they were fused shut by rust. The gate’s moving parts were ignored and, ultimately, transformed into hard clumps of rusted metal. Just like this inoperable gate, if we’re not careful, our hearts can become the same way.

The verse above references the day God told Moses to speak to a rock intended to be a source of water for the angry, thirsty mob the children of Israel had become. “Speak to the rock, Moses,” Moses heard the voice of the Lord say, “and I will cause water to flow from it” (Numbers 20:7). But Moses was so angry with the children of Israel that, instead, he thrashed the rock with his staff. This misrepresented the way God wanted to be viewed by the masses. Moses acted like no one could see him. He didn’t care how people would see God through him. Because Moses had become hard hearted toward his mission, there were consequences for him: he was not  permitted to enter the Promised Land.

God is doing something in your heart right now. Not only are you feeling the touch of the Holy Spirit in that area of your life, but your wheels are turning. Maybe you’re thinking about people you don’t want to think about. Could it be that God wants you to have conversations with them? Even now, as you are reading this at work, you’re planning how to take the long way to the break room to avoid any eye contact or interference with that person’s workstation.

As a Christian, you shouldn’t act like “I don’t see you and you don’t see me.” There’s a certain way God wants to be represented by you to those in your world. You’re the gate God wants to walk through to meet that person you have issues with. You need to be the gate that swings freely on its hinges rather than stuck in the shut position because your hinges have corroded closed.

Be operational, accessible, and kind, so that the people in your life can access Jesus through you. In your world, you are the way in!

This Daily Devotional was originally published at www.CalvaryFTL.org/DailyDevo

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