You know that thing in your chest that beats hard at the most inconvenient, nerve-wracking moments? The thing that pumps blood through your body? The thing that enables us to feel emotions? I think we know what I'm talking about. Speaking of talking (haha, see what I did there?), does your heart talk to you? I know the world says it does. You know what the world also says? Yeah, you do. It tells you to listen to your heart. There are probably a hundred songs out there with "listen to your heart" as a title or at least a line in the song. It's really popular to listen to your heart.
What has your heart told you before?
My heart has told me some pretty intense stuff. Especially at 1 A.M. The later I stay up, the worse it gets. It tells me to do what's best. For me. It tells me to hurt. A lot. It tells me that everything right is wrong. It tells me that doubt is better than faith--even in things I can see. It tells me to embrace apathy, because the emotions it's feelings are anything but happy. Lastly, it tells me the world is against me, and I can only live for myself. Because I'm the only one I should see.
And that's very stressful.
Being obsessed with yourself is a whole lot of work. When everyone else is wrong, there's a lot of pressure for you to be right. And when your heart's in control, what's right changes everyday. Every single day. It's really confusing.
So, what do we do? I have a solution, but it's very difficult to take in, and you may not like it.
Stop listening to your heart.
There. I said it. Here you go. That's the honest truth. I guess it's pretty simple, but sometimes the simplest things are the hardest to take in.
Lately, my emotions have been on a little joy ride, and there are a lot of bumps on the road. There are times when I'm joyful and thankful; there are times when I hate myself and forget how a great God could ever love ME. There are times when I think I'm too cool for life; there are times when I think I don't deserve life. There are times when I really feel God; there are times when I feel like He shouldn't exist. Even when my logic and my experiences say He does. Sometimes the facts all line up, but my heart just isn't in it. I may believe in my heart that Jesus died for me, but sometimes I just don't feel it.
That's why you shouldn't follow your heart. Honestly, your heart doesn't even know where it's going.
So, this probably isn't lovely to hear, but I'd be dishonest if I weren't to tell you the truth. The truth is that your feelings don't change the truth. I'm not saying that your heart is always bad, dangerous, and misleading. I'm saying that when you heart is overwhelmed, you can't trust it totally. When your heart is pure, trust it; when your heart is defiled, don't trust it. Most of the time, it's probably defiled. Don't trust it.
There's still a problem with this. Don't most things have to do with the heart? I mean, you can't rely on your brain for everything. Especially love and other emotions. How do we deal with those? There's gotta be a middle ground.
Of course, the middle ground, the perfect balance, comes with God. How does God give you the strength to use your heart and these emotions in the right way--the way that doesn't mislead and hurt? Through the Holy Spirit and Jesus, of course. God gives us the Spirit so that we may believe in Christ and He may live in our hearts. That's when we know true love. The love that gives up its life to save ours. The love that is in Jesus' sacrifice. And all we have to do is believe and surrender. It's not always easy, but we've got God on our side. Isn't that wonderful?
"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord's people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."-Ephesians 3:16-19
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