I heard these words years ago from a dear friend and I’ve never forgotten them. We were talking about doing hard things that we didn’t necessarily want to do but knew we should. She said, “The heart follows actions.” I wondered how God felt about that approach.
In the context of serving others, including my family, we are often called to minister and serve at all days and hours of the week that are not always convenient. We do it but perhaps not with the right attitude and heart.
The Bible tells us that, “…for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matt 6:21) I discovered this past year that when I pray for someone or something, my heart goes there. There is a heart change when you are contending for it. I prayed for a remote community and my heart is forever with that community. I prayed for a person who was rubbing me the wrong way and my heart is now championing them. Jesus taught this principle, that where we invest our time, energy and focus is where our heart will naturally gravitate.
Here’s what I’ve learned about myself . . . I can make myself say and do what is needed in the moment even if, in my head, I am grumbling and complaining about it. God spoke to me about that in my spirit and said, “Sylvia, I see your words and actions and they are good. I’m after your attitude, motives and heart.”
Those words hit me like a ton of bricks. God is more concerned about me, the inward me, not just what I present outwardly. That led me on a journey of regularly considering my heart and motives, particularly when doing things that I don’t enjoy. That, in turn, led to a lot of repenting and praying that the Holy Spirit would help me in this area.
The Bible also warns us that our heart cannot be trusted. Proverbs 4:23 states, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” We cannot trust our fleshly being. Without the transforming, redeeming, gentle leading of the Lord Himself, we are not naturally gracious and kindhearted.
This year, I will write down a few words or sentences each day, expressing all that I am thankful for. I will count my blessing from God and, in turn, pay it forward – not just in words and deeds, but within my mind and heart.
This leads me to a phrase I learned from our former pastor, Tim Howard. He once said to our staff that we should constantly seek to move from…
Have to
Ought to
Want to
Get to
Thank you, Lord, for using me in small and large ways to serve and love the people you created and that You also serve and love. I’m so glad I get to.
Sylvia Gaston is Connections Pastor at Koinonia Church in Hanford, CA. She can be reached at sylvia@kchanford or 559-582-1528.