A Spiritual Heart Transplant

If you've never experienced heart problems before, you may not realise how vital it is for living life. Of course you know you need it to pump your blood, and if it stops you're in big trouble. But what about for living day to day life. Even when it's still going, if your heart is failing you can only live a shadow of a life. Forget playing sport; getting out of bed can be an impossible proposition.

So imagine a person waiting for a new heart. They are dreaming of being able to get up in the morning without difficulty, to climb stairs, walk the dog, play sport, play with their kids - live their life!

One day they get the call - there is a heart. They receive the transplant and a new, healthy heart beats in their chest. Life is no longer off limits to them.

Now imagine that person goes back home and just lays in bed again. They could live now, but they don't. They are just happy to know their heart works, but they don't bother using it.

Someone died for them to gain life, and yet they make no use of it. Wouldn't you imagine they would want to make the most of the new lease on life they have been gifted with?

Doing nothing seems crazy in that situation. And yet we do it every day.

The symbolic heart in us has been transplanted with Gods heart. Jesus died and rose again to give it to us so that we could have new life, and life abundant!

And yet we go back to laying in bed. We go on as if we have received nothing out of the ordinary. Just happy to get to heaven. The heart of God lies dormant in our chests. We are missing out on the joy and fullness.

Perhaps it is because we have lived so long with the old heart that we don't quite believe that it is possible that we can actually live differently.

Perhaps that person with the heart transplant is afraid of disappointment, of failure, of life not living up to their dreams and expectations.

Perhaps that is what we are afraid of. If we step out in faith that this new heart really has transformed us, that the power of God is in us... Will we be disappointed? The weight of disappointment seems far worse than the unrealised, shadow of a life we are now living, so we stick with what we know.

It's time we stopped wasting the gift of life we have been given. Jesus died to give us a transplant, to transform us. But the difference is that he also rose again and lives with us, to give us the power to live the full lives we have dreamed of. Being a Christian is about more than just making sure we get to heaven in the end.

Far from being disappointed with reality, we will discover that a life lived for Jesus is far richer and more satisfying than we ever imagined!

The old life is gone—and see—a new life has begun! (2 cor 5:17)

I will plant a new heart and new spirit inside of you. I will take out your stubborn, stony heart and give you a willing, tender heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit inside of you and inspire you to live by My statutes and follow My laws. (Ezekiel 35:26-27)

Being a Woman & Video Response

It's been a while since I've posted any videos. I took an extended hiatus while I mulled things over privately. I tend to do that - percolate something until I'm ready to express it again. That process of percolation can take a few days to a few years, so my blogging and vlogging tends to be erratic as a result!

But just recently a man posted a video response to one of my Being a Woman videos that I uploaded ages ago. It was quite a bizarre feeling at first, to be watching someone else talking on a video and addressing it to me. In this cyber world it's easy to feel insulated and almost forget that there are actually real people on the other end of their computers, watching me.

But I found it really touching that someone would take the time to respond. And it was also a great reminder that I'm not the first or the last person to think about these things. And it's probably also a reminder to think more of myself as in a community - a community that stretches over the world through this crazy network that is the web - and remember that I'm not just a lone girl sitting at a computer sending things into thin air.

But anyway, here is the video I posted (which I haven't watched since I posted it, because I find it hard to do without cringing!), and the response, plus the message I wrote back.



Response:


My reply and further thoughts:

Thank you - I really appreciated your video response. I am actually married already, but what prompted me to do this video was more about my own wrestling with letting a man be what God created him to be, so that I can be a woman as God created me. Because, as you said in this video, we were created differently. And so even though I am married to a godly man, I am still young, and growing up in a world that fights over the 'gender issue' - even the church is in conflict over it - this means, I, like a lot of young women, have a lot to learn. Or re-learn as the case may be, because in the past I've believed the wrong things about what being a woman is all about.

In the search for 'equality', people have started believing that we can be exactly the same. And I think that robs both men and women of the strengths they were given. So thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my video and speak on this issue. The things you said really touched my heart.

God bless!

Follow your heart?

This is a follow up post to a comment made on the 'I don't Feel like it' post, which asked a great question.

The phrase "Follow your heart" is something we often hear when it comes to make decisions or living life - so how do we follow our hearts if our feelings can't always be trusted?

First of all, I think the "follow your heart" advice has a few different meanings - we may actually be saying "Go after your dreams", "Don't do things just because of others expectations", "Don't be cold and emotionless in all your decisions in life". Those things maybe be closer to what we are actually trying to say with "follow your heart", rather than "listen only to your feelings".

But sometimes when we say "follow your heart", we are meaning - go with your feelings. And I don't like that saying in that cas. I think it's unbiblical and liable to get us into trouble.

If "the heart is deceitful above all things" then it's probably not to be trusted with our life decisions.

In the Bible, the heart outside of God's control is not looked on very positively. Gen 8:21  every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood.

I think the saying "follow your heart" is a worldly idea, because in the world people believe that we are the masters of our own hearts, and should make our decisions based on our own inner most desires. But as Christians we know we have a different master, and One who has greater purpose than we can even dream.

So instead we should say, "Follow God, the one who knows our hearts, and has our best interests in His." That doesn't mean our feelings or dreams or desires don't matter - God placed them there, he knows them, and isn't going to neglect the things we hope for. But he also knows the far bigger picture and knows what will be right and wrong for us. He knows the deceptive parts of our hearts, and knows when we need to bring them under his control.

Trust God with your heart, and then you will be able to test and discern your feelings. Then rather than going on emotion or 'intuition', you will be going on the promptings of the Spirit.

Is 16:7  But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."

1Kings 8:61  But your hearts must be fully committed to the LORD our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands

Psalm 26:2  Test me, O LORD, and try me, examine my heart and my mind.