Guard Your Heart
I remember when I was going through a difficult break up, one of the things that was said to me the most was, “guard your heart”, as if to say, don’t let anything or anyone cause you pain.
And while the people who were saying this to me had really good intentions, I realize now that they didn’t even know that they were taking that verse completely out of context.
When people are going through something difficult, we tend to use “guard your heart” as a way to tell them to do whatever it takes to protect themselves from getting hurt or disappointed.
However, when we read through Proverbs 4, we see that break-ups and family arguments are not what Solomon was referring to when he said, “guard your heart.”
We’re looking specifically at Proverbs 4:23 today, but in order for us to understand what is being said, we need to take a look at the surrounding verses.
Beginning with the first verse of chapter four, we see that the entire context of the chapter is a father’s advice given to his children. More specifically, God’s advice given to his children.
A little further down we see that verse 13 says, “Take hold of my instructions; don’t let them go. Guard them for they are the key to life.”
While verses 20-22 say, “My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body.”
Some phrases that stand out to me when I read through those are:
TAKE HOLD OF MY INSTRUCTIONS AND DON’T LET THEM GO.
LET THEM PENETRATE DEEP INTO YOUR HEART.
The following verse is our key verse, which says, “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”
So what is Solomon saying here?
Is it advice for us to keep guard of our emotions and try our best to not get emotionally hurt or disappointed?
When I read through the chapter, I can’t help but think it’s something so much more than that.
When he says, “guard your heart”, he means fill your heart with God’s Word and don’t let go of those truths.
Guarding your heart doesn’t mean to protect yourself from getting hurt, it means to protect yourself from sin and the things that can creep into your heart if you’re not equipped.
One of my favorite passages of scripture is Ephesians 6:10-20 where we find Paul talking about the Armor of God.
In this little passage, he talks about how we have to put on the full armor of God to be able to stand firm against the devil’s schemes.
Each verse describes a piece of “armor” that we need to put on daily in order to be unwavering in our faith.
The second piece of armor mentioned in the passage is the Breastplate of Righteousness.
The breastplate is specially designed by God to protect our heart and soul from evil and deception. Our own righteous acts are no match for Satan’s attacks. The breastplate of righteousness has Christ’s name stamped on it, as though He said, “Your righteousness isn’t sufficient to protect you. Wear mine.”
You see, we’re not able to guard our own heart by simply “protecting ourselves” from getting hurt by other people.
We need the righteousness of Jesus and the truth of his Word to guard us; to protect us from all that the enemy tries to throw our way.
It’s important for us to remember that when we try to guard our heart in the way that the world wants us to, that we’re only being fueled by selfish desires.
We only want what’s best for us.
When we guard our heart in the way that the Bible instructs us to, we’re being motivated by our love for God and the desire to know him more.
We’re continually learning to love God and others better.
So yes, guard your heart, my friends.
But not in the way that keeps you from experiencing pain or emotion.
We were created to feel those things.
Guard your heart with the Word of God by digging into His truths every day.
That way when you’re faced with trials or temptations, you will be able to stand firm against the devil, just as we’ve been instructed to do.